School Fees

The school has taken into account the high cost of purchasing text books and has implemented a system of issuing all necessary texts (both physical and digital texts) at the start of the year to students. An annual levy will be charged and books will be returned to the school’s text book library at the end of the year. Parents will be billed for replacement costs where text books are lost or damaged.

There are a few occasions when payment for an activity is not covered by the basic tuition fee or year levy and is required as a cash payment at the time of the event.
• Years 9-12 elective levy costs: Given the diversity of elective courses studied, often for small numbers of students, these costs are charged at the time of the activity.
• Representative activities: Costs for activities which do not occur on a class basis are charged at the time of the activity. Examples of these costs are representative sport or mission and ministry team activities.
• Other Opportunities: From time to time an opportunity may arise for an excursion or activity which was unable to be predicted the previous year.

Maitland Christian School aims to provide a quality Christian education to all its students. Funding to meet the operational expenses of running the school is derived from fees charged to parents as well as from State and Commonwealth Government per capita recurrent funding. This fee policy should be read in conjunction with the school’s enrolment policy.

• the school Board considers affordability and both the short and long term sustainability of the school when setting school fees;
• fees are reviewed by the school’s board in October/November each year. Expected fee increases for the subsequent year are circulated to families as soon as is practical;
• the school requires payment of all fees agreed upon with families by the due date, with consequences for non-payment of fees or insufficient notice of enrolment changes;
• Fees will not be remitted in whole or part if the Student is absent due to illness, leave, or suspension

A. Basic Tuition Fees – These primarily contribute towards all costs associated with the provision of staff, resources, facilities, administration and business costs. Basic tuition fees are billed for the first and second children in a family attending this school in any one year. Subsequent children are not billed for basic tuition fees.
B. Building Levy – This levy contributes towards maintenance, alterations and loan repayments on existing buildings, and deposits for future buildings.
Building levies
apply to the first and second children in a family attending this school in any one year.
The levy is compulsory and is therefore not tax deductible.
C. Year Levies – These necessarily vary from year group to year group. Levies do not attract any rebates or discounts. As these are billed as annual expenses there is no refund for individual activities from which students may be absent. Year levies cover all excursions able to be planned the previous year (including camps in Years 3 to 9); transport and entry fees to school carnivals; entry fees for academic competitions; end-of-year dinner costs (Year 12); primary swimming scheme costs; start-of-year stationery packs (K-12); student planners; and an annual sport fee for all students in Years 7-10.

• Fees are calculated for the full calendar year and the first fee statement of the year indicates this annual amount. Subsequent quarterly statements indicate the remaining annual balance.
• Quarterly payments are due on the third Monday of each term.
• Alternatively, payments at smaller regular intervals (weekly, fortnightly, monthly) can be arranged with the Financial Assistant.
• The preferred method of payment of fees is Direct Debit, BPay or Parent Lounge.
• If you do not already have an existing Direct Debit arrangement in place, please contact the Financial Assistant to arrange your payment method at the beginning of each year. For new families joining the system it is preferred if the arrangement for this process can be established prior to the term in which they are to commence.
Direct Debit arrangements are in place between February and November (inclusive of holidays).
• Appointments can be made through the Financial Assistant to discuss any
financial concerns.

The school requires that fees are paid in full for each term. If the full fee payment for a term has not been received by the last week of term the family may either (at the Principal’s discretion) be notified that their account is to be referred to the school’s debt collector (all costs relating to debt collection will be at the expense of the family), or that their child(ren) will be ineligible to return to school the following term (or both) except
if:
• a family has established a pattern of regular payments and the school is satisfied that the family is carrying through with their established plan; or
• There are exceptional circumstances that need to be taken into account and these have been conveyed to the school via a process of regular communication with the Business Manager or Financial Assistant. Reminder letters are issued throughout each term. Should the debt remain outstanding at the end of term, the child’s place in class can be offered to a child from the waiting list. Where a family is advised that their child(ren) are ineligible for re-enrolment the following term they will only be able to re-enrol their children 1when outstanding fees are subsequently paid in full; and 2 if there are vacancies in their child(ren)’s grade(s) at the time full payment is received. As fee assistance applications are required in advance the school will not, at the time of such reminder letters being issued, process any fee assistance applications with respect to the term for which fee arrears have generated enrolment jeopardy.

• The school is able to offer fee assistance in the form of reduced tuition fees for families experiencing financial hardship. (N.B. This reduction does not apply to any levies) Such fee assistance applies to a calendar year and families should lodge their applications by the last week in November of the previous year or as soon as appropriate after a change of financial circumstances. In order to apply for fee assistance, families are required to contact the School’s Financial Assistant to obtain a Fee Assistance Application which, together with all necessary documentation, is submitted to the Business Manager for consideration. If a family wishes to obtain fee assistance for subsequent years, they must make a fresh application each year. It is always advisable for fee assistance applicants to make an appointment, through the Financial Assistant, to discuss matters with the Business Manager prior to lodging their written application.
• If a family experiences an unexpected short-term crisis (such as an income-affecting injury/illness or unexpected loss of work) they are able to apply to the school for a deferment or reduction of fees for a short period of time to ensure educational continuity for their children during the crisis. The application procedures are the same as for the other types of fee assistance.
• The School will consider a discount and fee assistance for recognised pastors/ ministers of evangelical Christian Churches that align with the School’s Statement of Faith. The application procedures are the same as for the other types of fee assistance.
• All applications are assessed confidentially by the Business Manager and in consultation with the Principal, as delegated by the Board.

• When a family wishes to withdraw their children from the school, written notice must be given to the Principal at least a term in advance. To avoid uncertainty, for example, a term’s notice for departure at the end of Term 4 needs to be given in writing to the school in the last week of Term 3. Where a term’s notice is not given, the school will bill the family a pro-rated portion of a term’s fees based on the amount of actual notice given. At the time the Principal receives written notice that a child is being withdrawn from the school he offers that child’s place in a grade to a child on the waiting list, if appropriate. The school applies this policy to each withdrawal of a student from Prep to Year 12, except of course for students in Year 12 who complete the HSC—their departure from the school is understood. Families who seek to have the term’s notice policy waived are usually not successful.
• Where families are aware that a departure may possibly occur they should advise the Principal in writing promptly, as early notification of a possible departure counts towards a term’s notice.
• Parents of Prep students who choose not to continue into Kindergarten at Maitland Christian School are also subject to a term’s notice of withdrawal. Failure to do so will incur a term’s fees in lieu of notice at Kindergarten rates.
• In the event that a family leaves the school with fees still in arrears (including any fees in lieu of insufficient notice given) they will receive one written reminder from the school. If there has been no satisfactory response from a family after that time the matter will be forwarded to a debt collection agency for legal action to collect the outstanding fees. Any legal costs incurred in recovery of debts will be added to the balance outstanding

• When a family is offered positions at the school for their children, the family is able to secure the positions by paying an enrolment fee of $500 within 30 days of the date of the offer. The enrolment fee is credited to the first fee account issued (provided that the family has attended the mandatory Maitland Christian School New Parent Information Evenings) but is not refundable if the children are withdrawn before the first day of school. Payment of $500 is required by the first day of attendance if the offer occurs within 30 days of this first day.
• When a student enrols in the middle of a term the fees for the remainder of the year are calculated proportionally.
• If a family’s application to the school is successful but there is not a vacancy in the grade for some or all of their children the relevant child(ren)’s name(s) is placed on the waiting list for the relevant grade(s). They are not required to make any payments until such times as places are offered.
• When a vacancy does arise in a grade with a waiting list the place is offered to the first name on the waiting list. The family has 30 calendar days to pay the $500 holding deposit to secure the place but has up to 9 school weeks or the first school day of the following year (whichever comes first) to start their child(ren) at the school – this allows for families who may have to give a term’s notice at an existing school.
• If a family declines the offer or does not pay the $500 holding deposit within 30 calendar days the offer lapses and it is then offered to the next name on the relevant waiting list.
• Where existing school families have a sibling on a waiting list but are in fee arrears their sibling application remains inactive until the fee arrears are addressed.