An elite private school that charges $25,000 a year to educate seven-year-olds is under investigation into possible misuse of taxpayer funds.
The King’s School in Sydney reportedly planned to install a plunge pool at the headmaster’s residence and sent the school’s senior staff to attend a British rowing event.
Those reports have sparked an inquiry by the New South Wales Education Department inquiry into the 191-year-old independent school’s use of public funding.
“The expectation of any non-government school receiving public funding is very clear: the funding must be for the education of its students,” Education Minister Sarah Mitchell said in a statement on Friday.
“I expect all non-government schools to comply with their not-for-profit requirements and will not hesitate to take action should it be clear they are non-compliant.”
The inquiry will be run in consultation with the Non-Government Schools Not-for-Profit Advisory Committee, which is directly responsible for ensuring the financial responsibility and accountability of schools receiving NSW Government funding.
If the North Parramatta school hadn’t followed the rules, there would be consequences, former federal education minister Stuart Robert said.
“I would have thought it would be very easy for King’s to show the Department of Education how they’ve funded various assets and what they’ve done with the money,” the Liberal MP told Nine’s Today program on Friday.
“I suggest they do that quickly.”
King’s has been contacted for comment.
In a statement to the Sydney Morning Herald, the school said it took its obligations seriously and was cooperating with the department.
The Anglican school is the oldest independent school in the country, charging about $24,000 for kindergarten students and up to $40,000 for year 12 students. Boarders are charged about $27,000 annually on top of tuition fees.
The two-storey headmaster’s residence features a main bedroom with a walk-in wardrobe, four other bedrooms, multiple sitting areas, a walk-in pantry, an outdoor spa and a porte-cochere.
It was last renovated in 2017.
