Dear Family,
Jai Shri Mataji!
We are working gradually through the many and varied steps required to get a Sahaja Primary School off the ground. Below is:
- Update on progress: an update for the collective since our last email;
- Next Steps & School Name Survey: a survey containing potential names for the new school for yogis to indicate their preference.
- Notice of Intention to Enrol Form: project’s next step and a form for parents to complete to confirm their intention to enrol their children in the school;
Thanks to everyone who has been expressing support for this auspicious project, there has been a lot of goodwill coming from all around the country for a successful outcome, let’s hope that by Mother’s Grace it becomes a reality.
Update on Progress:
Since the last email update, we have:
- Met with a legal adviser with experience establishing independent schools to clarify the legal structures required and the best way to approach the school application process with the Department of Education;
- Booked an onsite meeting at Balmoral in mid-February with our planning consultant and the allied specialist consultants needed for the initial planning reports needed to move toward with the land planning permissions;
- Prepared a draft Business Plan to evaluate the long-term financial feasibility of the project and to estimate the annual school fees parents will need to commit to.
Next Steps & School Name Survey:
Provided we confirm there are sufficient parent intentions within the collective to enrol their children (Notice of Intention to Enrol below), and following the onsite meeting at Balmoral, the next steps of the project are as follows:
- Choose a school name – please indicate your preferred name by filling out a very brief survey. Please see the “School Name Survey” link below.
- Formation of a non-profit legal entity as required to submit the school application;
- Submit the school application (due by 31 March 2021) to the Education Department;
- Commission a bush fire management report for approval by the Rural Fire Service.
The initial costs incurred to complete the above preliminary steps will be met from existing collective funds as the collective nationally has been very supportive of the project.
Parents Form – Notice of Intention to Enrol
Before committing to further expenditure, we would like to now reach out to parents to confirm their intention to enrol their children in the school.
A Business Case for the Primary school is being finalised. Examining the operating costs associated with running a licensed Boarding school, we currently estimate that the school fees will be approximately $10,000 per child per annum in the first year and that these will need to be paid yearly, in advance. Fees of this level are within the normal range for a primary boarding school operating in Australia. It is also in line with other major Sahaja schools in the world. The greater the number of students who enrol, the more ability we will have to potentially reduce the annual school fees.
This initial fee estimate above assumes that all staff will be paid award wages, which is the biggest expense item. If going forward, there is potential to save money in this area, we will explore those options but to begin with we should assume there will be a need to pay yogis for their full-time and dedicated service to the school.
With the above school fees estimate in mind, we now need to establish a firm intention from parents to enrol 30 to 50 children, to commence schooling in January 2023.
We now ask all parents with an interest in having their children attend the primary school, to please check the vibrations for your child to attend the school, commencing from January 2023 (for children turning 5 to 12 years of age during 2023). If the vibrations are cool and you have a strong desire to enrol your child, please complete the Notice of Intention to Enrol Form using the link below:
Whilst the above form is non-binding at this stage, we ask that you only complete it if you are genuine in your intention to enrol your child or children and anticipate you will have the financial capacity to pay the estimated fees a year in advance.
At the next stage of the project (see below), we will begin to seek more formal and binding commitments from parents.
Looking Ahead
Beyond the next steps outlined above, there will be considerable expenditure required to move the land planning permissions through to a point where we are permitted to build the school. There will also be further legal fees to finalise the necessary legal structures and to establish a Building Fund with Deductible Gift Recipient status (which would mean donations toward the school building would be tax deductible).
If we receive sufficient Intent to Enrol Forms from parents and if the bush fire management report receives approval from the Rural Fire Service, we will share the details of these expenditures and their approximate timings and begin a national fundraising campaign, seeking the generous support of the collective in the form of financial pledges to put toward the school establishment.
More information
- If you have any queries or suggestions, please send an email to [email protected]
- Previous Australian Primary School related news.
With Love
Brett
(Australian Coordinator)