In Riverton, 537 students were in public primary schools and 580 were at public high schools, compared to just 35 enrolled in an independent high school.

University of Western Australia school of social sciences head and demographer Amanda Davies said despite the best efforts of teachers, there was considerable inequity across the schooling system in terms of access to academic and training programs, facilities and overall schooling experience.

“Families moving to particular schooling catchments to access higher ranked schools or school with better facilities or reputations is not a new trend, but with the recent population growth, it is likely to be a growing trend,” she said.

“Population growth has resulted in more concentrated local demand for high-performing public high schools. This has meant catchment boundaries have been re-drawn, with the result being some households have found themselves no longer in their desired school catchment.

“For some, they are now opting to re-move to remain in the desired school catchment.

Loading

“Where people do move into areas with well-known high-performing schools, the overall impact on the population is a higher concentration of families with school-aged children, a higher concentration of families with a dual income, and a lower rate of out migration.”

Davies said parents also moved for reasons outside academic performance, including whether the school required students to have a laptop or iPad, if it had established training pathways to TAFE, the accessibility and quality of school facilities, and public transport links.

Edith Cowan University school of education senior lecturer Brad Gobby said high school was a more competitive market for parents than primary school.

He said many felt private schools would better set their children up for academic competition and future employment or a tertiary education, but the statistics on academic achievement and post-school destinations did not support that sentiment.

“Through their choices, parents are self-segregating and this is concentrating advantage in some high schools and disadvantage in other high schools,” Gobby said.

“This trend undermines the viability of many public high schools by depriving them of students, including middle class and academically capable students.

“It puts a strain on public schools’ resources and their ability to offer a comprehensive curriculum and a specialised curriculum in the senior secondary years.

“A limited curriculum exacerbates their challenge to retain and attract students. Private choices have public consequences. I worry that we’re heading into a situation of ‘choosers versus losers’.”

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.