Private school fees in Perth: what parents can compare

Perth is spread out, so families often weigh fees against travel time as well as school fit. Schools in the western suburbs, the northern corridor, the hills and the southern suburbs can sit in quite different fee tiers, and transport costs can add up over many years.

Western Australian year levels

Western Australian schools use Kindergarten and Pre-primary before Year 1, and secondary school starts at Year 7. Some schools publish a single primary fee and a single secondary fee, while others list every year level. Make sure you are comparing the same years at each school.

• Check whether Kindergarten and Pre-primary are charged differently from Year 1.
• Look for building, capital, technology and resource levies in the compulsory total.
• Ask whether camps, devices and co-curricular programs are included or billed separately.
• Separate one-off enrolment and confirmation fees from the annual cost.

Model the WACE years separately

Years 11 and 12 are often the most expensive years on a fee schedule. If two schools look similar in primary, check what happens through secondary, because the gap can widen in the senior years.