Across almost all states and territories, year 7 is the first year of high school. But a move to nationalise an education policy has been deeply unpopular in small country towns where there are no high schools. Almost a decade since the policy was enforced in Western Australia, small primary schools across the state are still struggling with the fallout that saw people move away from their communities. It comes as the cost of sending kids to boarding schools continues to rise around the country.
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00:00The start of a school day in Newdigate, a small wheat and sheep town four hours east
00:10of Perth, population 159.
00:15A three classroom school, the district hub for farming families.
00:20Laura Ness started school at Newdigate.
00:23She was among hundreds of country students across WA who had to leave their primary schools
00:30and homes to move onto high school after year six.
00:34Yeah, I was about 11 when I headed to boarding school in Perth and I guess it was a big change
00:41from going from a small community with only 40 kids in the school to living with 180 girls
00:47under one roof.
00:48The policy was imposed in 2015, bringing Western Australia's public schools in line with all
00:55Australian states and territories except South Australia, which only made the switch two
01:01years ago.
01:02Yeah, you go from living on the farm, yeah, and going to school with probably 40 other
01:08kids to attending a high school with over a thousand and you've got another 200 odd
01:13boys in your year group, whereas I only had one when I was in year six.
01:17The policy was fiercely resisted in the bush.
01:20As a town we value family, we value community and we wanted our kids here as part of our
01:27family and as part of our community, so there was a great deal of resistance to the idea
01:33of kids moving away for year seven.
01:35Almost a decade on, the social, financial and emotional impacts on small communities
01:41like Newdigate are still felt today.
01:45It has a significant effect on our school numbers, which impacts every aspect of the
01:49school.
01:50It also impacts all of our students' sporting groups, it reduces numbers there.
01:55It impacts the whole town socially.
01:58Now the West Australian Government is reviewing regional education, calling for input from
02:03country families and schools.
02:06At the moment the subsidies that the federal and state government offers do not cover the
02:10costs.
02:11These costs are proving to be a problem for parents right around the country.
02:16The Isolated Children Parents Association says the federal boarding allowance for isolated
02:21children was originally intended to cover 55% of average boarding expenses.
02:28These days the organisation says it covers only 37% of the average fee, which in 2023
02:35was $25,000.
02:38More stress for regional families already facing significant cost of living pressures.