‘Like a runaway train’: Private girls’ schools lead 2027 fee hikes

November 3, 2026 — 5:30amParents with children attending Victoria’s high-fee schools can expect to pay thousands of dollars more next year, as independent and Catholic schools point to payroll tax and teacher wages to justify fee hikes well above inflation.Families with students at all-girls schools will be among the hardest hit, with several raising year 12 fees well above the 6.3 per cent average for Melbourne’s high-fee schools.Deakin University education policy expert Emma Rowe said private school parents were “locked in” to uncapped fee hikes each year, describing it “like a runaway train at the moment, and it’s really unsustainable”.Ivanhoe Girls’ Grammar School has built a four-storey facility at a cost of about $37 million.Ivanhoe Girls’ Grammar School has raised its fees 15.1 per cent to $41,900 for years 11 and 12 next year, the largest increase of any school included in The Age’s analysis.In 2025, the independent school in Melbourne’s north-east began construction of a $37 million four-storey building, which will have a cafe and specialist tech facilities including audio recording and studio spaces when it opens.The price tag exceeded the school’s entire yearly expenditure of $34.63 million, according to its 2025 annual report, of which the majority – $24 million – went to staff salaries.Ivanhoe Girls’ Grammar School will open its state-of-the-art facility next year. Eddie JimSome families have expressed frustration online with the school’s “entirely unnecessary empowerED building and program”, accusing it of hiking fees to pay for its development. The school did not respond to a request for comment when contacted by The Age.Rowe said tying fees to government funding – where the more a school charged, the less taxpayer funding it would receive – would limit the “problematic” year-on-year hikes.This would encourage schools to maintain low fees and keep independent education more affordable for financially struggling families, Rowe said.“You can’t expect public funding but no public regulation,” she said. “It’s not OK to have publicly funded schools that keep raising their tuition fees.”Rowe noted that while high-fee schools weren’t uncommon internationally, Australia was an outlier in the extent taxpayers propped them up.Genazzano FCJ College in Kew has raised its fees 9.6 per cent to $45,500 for year 12 in 2027, the second-largest increase in the schools analysed by The Age.The Catholic all-girls school sold prime real estate for $1.98 million in April to pay down debt, as enrolments plummeted 35 per cent since 2020, from 834 students to 609 students this year.Principal Loretta Wholley said Genazzano fees remained below those of other independent schools in Kew.“Like all schools, we are managing significant cost pressures, and the 2027 fee reflects our continued investment in teaching and learning,” she said.“Genazzano has educated students in Kew since 1889 and is planning confidently for the future.”Mentone Girls Grammar School, whose enrolments have declined 25 per cent over the same period, had the third-biggest hike – 8.2 per cent – charging $43,000 for years 11 and 12.Camberwell Girls’ Grammar School, where enrolments have grown by 3.6 per cent, had the fourth-highest rise of 7.9 per cent, with fees reaching $45,595 for years 11 and 12.Principal Debbie Dunwoody said school council had considered economic conditions, educational priorities and the “investment required to maintain the quality of our education and student experience” when reviewing fees.“We recognise that families make a significant financial investment in their children’s education,” she said.“Our responsibility is to ensure that investment continues to deliver the quality of teaching, breadth of educational opportunities and strong academic outcomes that families have come to expect from Camberwell Girls.”Several other high-fee schools, including Xavier College, Melbourne and Camberwell grammar schools, Strathcona Girls, Geelong College and the Jewish schools had not published their 2027 fees with just weeks left in the school year, creating uncertainty for families.Australia’s most expensive school, Geelong Grammar, will charge $58,320 per year for years 10 to 12 students attending its Corio campus next year.The future King Charles III with Geelong Grammar students in 2005 when he returned to the campus he attended as a teen.Wayne TaylorIts flagship campus, Timbertop, where year 9 students board for four terms near Merrijig to experience Victoria’s high country, will cost $99,756.When extras, including up to $1300 in skiing costs and $30 for a birthday cake, are added, most families will see that fee soar past six figures.The combined cost of a student attending from prep to year 12 will be $606,700 at Geelong Grammar in 2027. If fees continue to rise at 5 per cent, the combined cost will be $702,331 by 2030.Independent Schools Victoria has pointed out that schools face cost pressures beyond general inflation of 4.3 per cent, including rising staff costs, which account for about 70 per cent of school operating costs, plus insurance, utilities and Victoria’s payroll tax.The Liberal Party has vowed if it wins government later this month, it will repeal the payroll tax for government and non-government schools.Independent Schools Victoria chief executive Rachel Holthouse said Victoria was the only state that charged the tax on independent schools, and it affected schools serving everyday families, adding to costs for parents.Independent Schools Victoria chief executive Rachel Holthouse.Joe ArmaoHolthouse said more than half of all new independent school enrolments since 2019 hade been in schools charging less than $7500 a year.“We know cost-of-living pressures are real, and many families are working hard to afford the school that best suits their child’s needs,” she said.However, those with children at mid-fee schools will also see increases in 2027, including those at one of the almost 300 Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools.A spokesperson said fees would be capped at 5 to 9 per cent – with some exceptions – in line with recent years.Catholic schools, whose teachers have had pay parity with public colleagues since the 1990s, have warned families that matching Victorian public school teachers’ historic 28 per cent pay increase could result in fee hikes and program cuts.De La Salle College has increased its fees by 9 per cent – to $17,593 for year 12 – in 2027.The all-boys Catholic school in Malvern has had enrolments drop 22.5 per cent from 2020 to 2026.But principal Michael Ilot said De La Salle had more students moving from higher-fee schools because they recognised the college’s academic value.De La Salle principal Michael Ilot says the Catholic school has families which have turned away from high-fee schools.Ilot, who previously held a senior position at Xavier, said families reported valuing the academic opportunity, quality teaching and strong school community at De La Salle’s accessible cost.“That’s why we have kept our fees capped at 9 per cent, without compromising on the educational quality and pastoral care our students receive,” he said. “You don’t need to pay the highest fees to achieve the best results.”University of NSW economist Richard Holden said it wasn’t unreasonable for private schools to claim public school wages were driving up staff costs.“They’re competing for teachers in a general teacher labour market, so if one part of a sector gives a large pay rise, then it’s hard not to give the same large pay rise to your own teachers,” he said.In addition to wages, Holden said schools had a range of costs, including inputs like energy, education costs such as AI subscriptions, and ensuring facilities met families’ expectations.From our partners