Two Sydney private schools are now spending more than $5 million per year to pay large teams of executives to run the institutions.
Newington paid its team of 19 “key managers” $5.3 million, while Pymble Ladies’ College gave its 15-member executive team a total of $5.3 million, according to 2024 financial statements filed with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission.
The rising management costs come as private school fees have ballooned by thousands of dollars a year, which principals and school boards say is necessitated by increased staffing costs as teacher wages have grown.
The financial data of 48 schools across Sydney shows 13 schools reported remuneration for “key management personnel” increased by $500,000 or more between 2023 and 2024.
A further 15 schools saw the total pay packets of their management teams grow by at least $100,000 in 12 months. At nine schools, the amount paid to key management personnel declined, with the payment of long-service leave and staff turnover in some cases influencing the total.
Cranbrook had the largest average amount paid to management in 2024, but its figures were distorted by a payment to a former key manager, which its financial report said was subject to a confidential deed. Its former head, Nicholas Sampson, departed the institution in 2024.
St Catherine’s School in Waverley, Riverview and Shore all paid more than $4 million per year to managers. A St Catherine’s spokesman said it reflected a period of “restructure and change” across its school and the education sector.
Management pay information has been publicly available since 2022 following a shake-up of charity rules. Reported figures relate to senior decision-makers in an organisation, according to the charities commission, and not team leaders or operational managers.
Some schools recorded two managers, while several others had teams of more than a dozen. SCEGGS Redlands had 21 in 2024 – an increase of 10 people on the previous year, which a spokeswoman said reflected those closely involved in the management of the school.
Public school principals make up to $236,318 a year.
A spokesman for Independent Schools NSW said private school pay reflected enhanced responsibilities, qualifications and skills required to manage organisations turning over millions of dollars every year.
The NSW Education Standards Authority said schools must demonstrate a “clear and documented rationale” for their remuneration decisions.
SCEGGS Darlinghurst principal Holly Gyton said an additional staff manager, salary increases for all staff and additional superannuation costs had driven up the amount paid to managers.
Scott James, headmaster of Knox Grammar, where total management remuneration fell, said: “Remuneration is set in line with responsibilities and sector benchmarks, and pay rates themselves have not declined.”
Education Minister Jason Clare said every dollar that schools spend must support the education of students.
“I think it’s fair enough that if parents are paying school fees, they deserve to know how much principals are being paid,” he said.
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