Calls for full-service schools to tackle Australia’s growing education divide

Researchers from Victoria University’s Mitchell Institute are calling for the implementation of full-service schools to tackle Australia’s widening education divide. 

Australian education data shows inequality begins early and deepens over time. By Year 9, students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds are more than five years behindtheir peers, and attendance gaps have widened.   

A potential solution, according to the Mitchell Institute, is the establishment of full-service schools in areas where they are needed most.  

A full-service school model means taking a wraparound approach to providing the health and wellbeing supports disadvantaged students may need to ensure they can come to school ready to learn. It is a successful international model that is yet to take off in Australia. As the Mitchell Institute’s reportAchieving Better and Fairer Schools: The case for full-service school models in Australia finds, there is an urgent need for the model to be adopted here. 

Key findings include: 

• Traditional schools are not equipped to meet complex needs – Students experiencing disadvantage face barriers like poverty, poor health and unstable housing that hinder engagement and learning.
• Educational inequality is growing – The learning gap between advantaged and disadvantaged students now equates to more than five years.
• Full-service schools deliver the wraparound supports needed to close educational inequality – Quality teaching alone cannot overcome the complex barriers to engagement that some children and families face. Embedding health, wellbeing and family services into the core of school operations helps create the right conditions for learning.
• The model can be cost-effective – International examples from the US and UK demonstrate improvements in attendance, engagement, wellbeing and student achievement. Cost-benefit analyses showed social and economic returns of up to $15 for every dollar invested.
• Momentum for change exists now – Australian state and territory governments have signed up to a 10-year funding agreement with the Federal Government, providing a unique opportunity to make ‘wellbeing for learning’ reforms a reality. 

"Schools see the impact of disadvantage every day, but they can’t solve it alone. Full-service schools connect classrooms with the services that children and families rely on. The focus must be on supporting the schools serving the students who need it most," Senior Research Fellow and report lead author, Dr Andres Molina said. 

The report highlights the specific conditions needed for a successful full-service school, such as secure funding, community involvement and dedicated resources within school leadership.  

"This is about more than just co-location of services – the intention is to redefine the culture and operation of schools," Dr Molina said. 

The report calls on state and territory governments to commit to a framework to guide delivery of full-service school models, with jurisdictional flexibility, coordination across education, health and community sectors, and long-term investment to support implementation in schools where the need is greatest. 

The report includes analysis showing more than 60 per cent of students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are skipping breakfast at least once and 30 per cent never eat breakfast during a typical school week. 

"Students can’t learn if they’re hungry, unwell or anxious about what’s happening at home," Dr Molina said. 

Full-service schools meet children where they are — recognising that learning depends on wellbeing. This model puts students at the centre of education reform.

Read more in The Conversation.