The review of laws governing non-government school expenditure has recommended sensible changes that will provide clarity and support compliance, the Association of Independent Schools NSW (AISNSW) has said.
AISNSW Chief Executive Margery Evans said that Independent schools have always recognised and supported the right of the public to be assured about the expenditure of government funds.
“The review of Section 83C of the NSW Education Act 1990 was an opportunity to make much-needed changes to improve the regulation of spending by non-government schools.
“The absence of a review since 2014 resulted in a lack of clarity, protracted timeframes, unnecessary expenses and uncertainty for schools who are trying to do the right thing.
“This review, by former NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) Chairman Tom Alegounarias, appears to go a long way to restoring the intent and integrity of the 2014 legislation, the principles of which AISNSW has publicly supported,” Ms Evans said.
The Review makes 16 recommendations to improve the regulation of non-government schools in NSW, proposing only principles and directions.
“AISNSW will examine the report in further detail over the coming days,” Ms Evans said.
“The review’s key recommendation – to shift responsibility for Section 83C regulation from the NSW Department of Education to NESA – will remove the perception of a conflict of interest.
“It is more appropriate that this function sits with NESA, which already performs many regulatory functions across all three school sectors, including school registration.”
The proposed changes to the Act’s accompanying Regulations and Guidelines will help to reduce confusion and provide clarity to non-government schools which will aid compliance, Ms Evans said.
“Independent schools strive to comply with all laws; they are already accountable to at least six Federal and State Government agencies¹ as well as to their Boards and parents.”
AISNSW represents 426 Independent schools across 563 campuses who educate almost 237,000 students, or 19 per cent of all NSW school students.
1. NESA, the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC), the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the Federal and State Departments of Education.
