![]() ![]() Her husband Michael, who is also 57, was diagnosed with dementia in the past fortnight. When Blake started high school this year Ms Csallo was only able to pay for the required three pairs of shoes and two school uniforms with help from the Smith Family's Learning for Life program. Twelve-year-old Blake hopes to be a chef, seven-year-old Dom just wants to be the best kid he can, and six-year-old Milly is torn between being a dancer and a police officer. Ms Csallo is optimistic about her grandchildren's futures, if they can navigate the cost-of-living crisis. "The cost-of-living pressures we're seeing today are playing out in enormously challenging ways for many young people." "Education for us … is the pathway out of poverty and to building a good future, and so stability in a child's life really does matter," Mr Taylor said. In 2021 the company, which issues education bonds and loans, estimated the cost at $74,213.ĭoug Taylor says families are having to make "impossible decisions" as the cost of living rises. It estimates "hidden costs" like textbooks, stationary, uniforms, laptops and excursions now cost parents $84,544 over 13 years of public schooling. More than 81 per cent of those surveyed believed those kids would not have what they needed for school, with 75 per cent fearing that would impact their futures after school.Īccording to Futurity Investment Group, which runs an index on the cost of schooling in Australia, 28 per cent of parents are very stressed or extremely stressed about paying for their child's education. "Clearly, in the Australian consciousness there's a great awareness of the challenges families are experiencing, and we absolutely see it on the ground for families who have to make almost impossible decisions about where to use their limited funds." 'Pathway out of poverty' getting more expensiveĪn estimated 750,000 children - one in six young people in Australia - are currently living in poverty, the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) estimates. "I think it's incredibly significant," he said. The findings also show 81 per cent believe child poverty will get even worse in the next 12 months, says the Smith Family's chief executive Doug Taylor. That is an increase from 56 per cent when the survey was taken at the height of the pandemic in December 2020. Ms Csallo's observations are shared by most Australians, according to a long-running survey released exclusively to ABC News.ĭo you know more about this story? Email per cent of Australians believe child poverty has worsened due to cost-of-living pressures, according to The Smith Family's community attitude survey, taken nationally by Essential Media. Now the uniforms are like $300 because they need a certain uniform." "We could go to our local shop and pick up a school uniform for like $5. The price of the things weren't as dear as they are now," she said. "When our kids were little, the money value was more. She said budgeting for the children's needs was "totally different" today. Wages are just staying the same," Ms Csallo said. Ms Csallo is raising three grandchildren in Toowoomba, west of Brisbane, and fighting hard to keep their dreams alive. At a time most would be thinking of retirement, the 57-year-old cleaner is doing it all over again.
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