A05: South Australia State Council

In 2025, the average cost of boarding fees in Australia was $27,266, yet under the current eligibility criteria, the Additional Boarding Allowance (ABA) is received by less than 12% of families receiving the Assistance for Isolated Children (AIC) Boarding Allowance.
Eligibility is determined through parental income means testing rather than the actual financial burden faced by families, despite the ABA being intended to assist with boarding costs exceeding the Basic Boarding Allowance of $10,555. The ABA is currently capped at $3,027 per student annually; however this represents the maximum payment available, with many eligible families receiving only a portion of this amount due to the parental income means test.
We request that, upon review of the ABA eligibility criteria, families whose verified boarding fees exceed the combined value of the Basic Boarding Allowance and Additional Boarding Allowance ($13,582) automatically qualify for the ABA component without being subject to parental income testing. Whilst we understand the Additional Boarding Allowance is intended to provide additional support for lower income families, it is evident that it is not providing adequate additional support given less 12% of boarding families receive it.
For geographically isolated families, boarding school is essential to accessing secondary education, and costs routinely exceed the Basic Boarding Allowance, placing considerable financial pressure on families, particularly those with multiple children.
Basing ABA eligibility on verified boarding costs, rather than parental income, would provide fairer and more equitable support while maintaining the integrity and purpose of the scheme. In addressing concerns surrounding ABA eligibility criteria, it is important this does not detract from the ongoing need to increase the Basic Boarding Allowance, which supports educational access for all eligible families.

Boarding Example Costs:
Family 1 Lives 150 km from their closest town, Coober Pedy and sits within the Federal electorate of
Grey in the far north of South Australia
Son (Yr9) at boarding school in Adelaide.
Home to Adelaide is 998 km one-way (1996 km return).
Boarding Fees of School $32,160
Basic Boarding Allowance Received $10,553
Additional Boarding Allowance Received $650
Boarding costs my family $18,055 after his scholarship is applied. $11,204 federal government
support.
Gap $6,851
*boarding scholarship Yes. Without his scholarship, and relying solely on the AIC, our family would
not have been able to afford to send him away to provide a secondary education - without his
scholarship, our family would be out of pocked for a $20,956 gap each year after the application of
the AIC at the current rate we receive. That's just the boarding side, with tuition also extremely high.
*With a second child nearing the end of her primary education and needing to go to boarding school
for her secondary education, it is a genuine concern for our family whether we will be able to afford
it. If she does not secure a scholarship, we will be unable to afford to educate her, which is going to
lead to some extremely hard times for our family.
** these figures do not include school fees or incidentals

Family 2 lives 205km from their closest town (Coober Pedy) and sits within the Federal electorate of
grey in the far north of South Australia.
Son (Yr12) & Daughter (Yr8) are at boarding school in Adelaide.
Home to Adelaide is 990km one way, 1980km return.

Boarding Fees of Schools is $50,948.00
Basic Boarding Allowance (BBA) Received $21,110.00
Additional Boarding Allowance (ABA) Received $1782.91
Boarding costs my family $50948.00
I receive $22,892.91 federal government support.
Gap $28,055.09
*does not receive the benefit of any scholarships
** these figures do not include school fees or incidentals

Family 3 Lives 105km from their closest town Oodnadatta and 220km from the slightly
larger centre of Coober Pedy and sits within the Federal electorate of Grey in the far north of South
Australia.
Son (Yr7) & Daughter (Yr9) at boarding school in Adelaide. Home to Adelaide is 990km one-way
(1980km return).
Boarding Fees of School $56,000
Basic Boarding Allowance Received $10,780/child
Additional Boarding Allowance Received Child 1 $224.70 / Child 2 $225.32
Boarding cost my family $56,000, I receive $22,010.02 federal government support.
*one child on boarding scholarship
** these figures do not include school fees or incidentals
Gap $33,989.98

Family 4 Lives 150km from their closest town Peterborough and sits within the Federal electorate of
Grey in South Australia.
Daughter (Yr8) at boarding school in Adelaide.
Home to Adelaide is 387 km one-way (774 km return).
Boarding Fees of School $29,748
Basic Boarding Allowance Received $10,555
Additional Boarding Allowance Received $ under process so NIL
Boarding cost my family $29,748 and I receive $10,555 federal government support.
Gap $19,193
*does not receive the benefit of any scholarships
** these figures do not include school fees or incidentals

Family 5 Lives 50km from their closest town Orroroo, which sits within the Federal electorate of
Grey.
Son (Yr11) at boarding school in Adelaide. Home to Adelaide is 325km one-way (650km return).
Boarding Fees of School $31,860
Basic Boarding Allowance Received $10,555
Additional Boarding Allowance Received $0
Boarding cost my family $ 31,860. I receive $10,555 of federal government support.
Gap $21,305
*Boarding scholarship
** these figures do not include school fees or incidentals

Family 6 lives 83km to the nearest town, 175km to the nearest public high school and sits within the
Federal electorate of grey in the far North East of South Australia.
Son (yr 9) and daughter (yr 7) are at boarding school in Adelaide. Home to Adelaide is 800km one
way (1600 km return).

Boarding Fees of School $58,896
Basic Boarding Allowance Received $21,110
Additional Boarding Allowance Received (still waiting to hear if approved and the amount)
Scholarship received $4,958.99
Discounts $1,348.43
Gap $31,478.58
*small scholarship received
** these figures do not include school fees or incidentals

Family 7 lives 150km from their closest town Coober Pedy and sits within the Federal electorate of
Grey in the north-west of SA.
2 sons (yr 10 and yr 7) at boarding school in Adelaide. Home to Adelaide is 800km one-way (1600km
return).
Boarding Fees of School $32505 + $31860 = $64365
Boarding Scholarship $16300 + $15930 =$32230
Basic Boarding Allowance $21580
Additional Boarding Allowance Received $0
Boarding cost my family $64365. I receive in scholarships $32,230 and I receive $21,580 of federal
government support.
Gap $10,555
*Boarding scholarships
** these figures do not include school fees or incidentals

Family 8 Lives 45km from their closest town Woomera and 210km from the slightly larger centre of
Port Augusta, sitting within the Federal electorate of Grey.
Son (Yr8) & Daughter (Yr10) at boarding school in Adelaide. Home to Adelaide is 521km one-way
(1042km return).
Boarding fees of School $65,010
Basic Boarding Allowance Received $20,816 (for 2 children)
Additional Boarding Allowance Received $0
Boarding cost my family $65,010. I receive $20,816 of federal government support.
Gap $44,194
*does not receive the benefit of any scholarships
** these figures do not include school fees or incidentals

Family 9 lives in a remote area, approximately 297 km from the nearest town of Coober Pedy, within
the Federal electorate of Division of Grey.
Their daughter (year 9) attends boarding school in Adelaide. Home to Adelaide is 700km one-way
(1400km return)
Boarding Fees of schools minus scholarships: $37,124
Basic Boarding Allowance Received: $21,110
Additional Boarding Allowance Received $0
Gap: $16,014
*Boarding scholarships
** these figures do not include school fees or incidentals