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New voluntary contribution guidelines

Education Minister Phil Gude has released new voluntary contribution guidelines for school councils.

The new guidelines identify the materials and services provided by the Government, the special materials parents are expected to contribute to and the circumstances where voluntary contributions may be requested.

"The Government’s policy on voluntary contributions remains unchanged from that of previous Governments’ and that is that voluntary contributions are exactly that: voluntary," Mr Gude said.

Under the Education Act 1958 instruction in the eight key learning areas is free to all students, with the exception of full fee-paying overseas students.

In line with long-standing practice, parents are required to pay for a range of materials and services, including school uniforms, student textbooks, student requisite stationery, programs provided by outside artists or speakers, camps and excursions, graduation dinners and debutante balls and extra-curricular programs.

"Parents have always been required to pay for these types of items and services and often it is these costs that many people confuse with voluntary contributions," the Minister said.

The new guidelines reinforce the requirement that all charges and parent voluntary contributions must be approved by the School Council and must be kept to a reasonable level and within the expectations of the school community.

Voluntary contributions may be used for, among other things, co-operatives, library funds, building funds, additional equipment purchases and ground beautification projects.

The guidelines also reinforce that, where parents choose not to pay the voluntary contribution, their children must not be treated differently from students whose parents pay the contribution. Likewise, the provision of student reports cannot be conditional on the payment of a charge or voluntary contribution.

School Councils will be asked to make available to parents details of the guidelines.

(News Release, Office of the Minister for Education, July 30, 1999)