School fees are made up of tuition fees which are set by Cairns Catholic Education, and the school’s levies.
Tuition Fees
Our school is part of an independent school system. The need to charge fees arises from the policy of governments to deliver significantly lower per capita grants to non-government schools than to state schools. Whilst this necessitates tuition fees and levies, it also ensures we are able to maintain some independence as a school system and achieve the ideals of the Catholic Church in our school organisation.
The schedule of tuition fees is set by Catholic Education Services.
The current schedule is at the link below.
Levies
School Levies are set and reviewed annually by the St Joseph’s School Board and approved by the Parish Priest. These levies include:
- Building Levy (buildings and maintenance)
- P&F Fundraising Levy
- IT Levy
- Resource Levy
Please contact the school office for current levies.
Discounts
Every attempt is made to make an education at St Joseph’s affordable so that no Catholic child is denied a Catholic education because of financial difficulties. Parents are often pleasantly surprised at the affordability of Catholic Education in the Cairns Diocese, especially when compared with other non-government schools (private/independent), or Catholic schools in capital cities.
A sibling discount applies to families where more than one child is attending one or more Catholic schools in the Cairns Diocese.
Holders of a current means-tested Australian government health care or pensioner concession cards receive an automatic 70% discount on tuition fees (does not apply to school levies).
Families who are not concession card holders yet are experiencing financial hardship are encouraged to make a confidential request to the principal for special consideration. Please contact the school’s Finance Officer to arrange an appointment.
Unless prior arrangements have been put in place, failure to follow school policy and procedures may result in the engagement of a Debt Recovery Agency.
