The annual Report on Government Services suggests budget cuts are beginning to impact public schools.

Recently released data from the Productivity Commission shows government funding for private schools growing at a 60 per cent higher rate than funding for public schools.

Between 2006-07 and 2015-16 government funding to public schools increased at an average rate of 1.5 per cent per year. In the same period, government spending on private schools increased 2.4 per cent.

“The first four years of needs-based funding was starting to lift results,” says Correna Haythorpe, Federal President of the Australian Education Union.

“Needs-based funding delivered between 2013 and 2016 was not enough overcome a long-term trend that sees private school funding growing at a much higher rate than public school funding.

“Before Turnbull’s school funding cuts, we were on the right path to addressing funding inequity. The full six years of the previous needs-based funding model would have seen 80 per cent of extra funding directed to public schools.

“The Turnbull Government has cut billions from schools. It will now only deliver 20 percent of the funding public schools need to reach the minimum resource standard, while delivering 80 percent to private schools,” said Ms Haythorpe.