One tends to take education for granted, but those present at our latest meeting found out that there is a lot more to it than meets the eye. Philip Goldsworthy is one of the most experienced participants in the Independent Schools sector – the other sectors being Government, Catholic, and to a lesser extent, Home Schooling. The media tends to portray the situation as Private schools versus Public schools, but the term ’Private’ is a misnomer, as they are mostly Incorporated, Not-For-Profit organisations that also rely on governments for some funding and which still have to comply with Government regulations.Philip made reference to 5 aspects of education in WA – Literacy, Enrolments, Funding, Health, and Parents, and it is sobering to learn that around 4 million kids (i.e. about 1/3rd) can’t read properly. As far as enrolments go, about 64% of pupils are in the Public sector, but the swing to the Private sector has significant ramifications. The Commonwealth Government pays out about $29 billion for education each year, $11b to Public, $10b to Catholic, and $8b to Independent schools. In WA the latter school fees range from $27,500 to $32,700 pa. On health matters food is broken into 3 categories – Green, Amber and Red – and ham sandwiches are now in the red! Parent input is generally positive and useful, but sometimes things get ugly with one or two individuals. Fascinating stuff!