The Southport School

The Southport School is an Anglican day and boarding School for boys from Preschool to Year 12 with boarding available from Year 7. If you would like to enrol in other year levels or enquire about immediate entry, please contact the Admissions Office regarding availability.

Please note that Tuition and Boarding Fees at The Southport School are ALL-INCLUSIVE. There are NO extra compulsory levies for subjects, excursions, and camps.

Requests for Application for Admissions and the Prospectus can be made by completing the ‘Apply for a Prospectus‘ link on the menu or by clicking on the links below. For more information we welcome you to contact the Admissions Office directly on +61 1300 877 269 or admissions@tss.qld.edu.au. We look forward to your inquiry.

The Southport School (the School) looks to enrol students who can contribute to, and benefit from, its program. The School is open to all boys, regardless of their ethnic or religious origins, who support the School’s philosophy. Students are invited to apply for admission to the School on the basis of academic potential, developmental maturity, school achievement and readiness for the School’s program. Where appropriate, testing is used as a tool to provide information to assist in the assessment of each candidate. The School retains the right in all cases to determine, at its discretion, whether or not to select a student for admission.

Related Documents & Legislation

• Academic Talent Development Policy
• Students with Additional Learning Needs Policy
• Enrolment of Students with Disabilities Additional Learning Needs Policy
• Anti-Discrimination Act
• Australian Education Act
• Australian Human Rights Commission Act
• Disability Discrimination Act
• Disability Standards for Education 2005, including Guidance Notes
• Education (General Provisions) Act

Responsibility for Admissions

The Headmaster is responsible for the admission of boys to the School and, at times, their removal. The Headmaster delegates the admissions function to the Admissions Registrar who assumes full responsibility for this area.

Criteria for Admission

Admission decisions are based on multiple criteria, namely:

• Academic readiness or qualification
• Attitude and motivation
• Maturity
• Affiliation with The Southport School or St Hilda’s School
• Appropriateness of the match between the family and The Southport School.

Sequence of Admission

Normally applicants are admitted in a sequence depending on the chronological order of the application. Priority is given to boys who already have brothers at the School or sisters attending St Hilda’s, close relatives of Old Boys, and sons of members of faculty and staff.

Waiting List

When there are more qualified candidates than places available, the School establishes an unranked waiting list. Should places then become available, the Admissions Registrar decides which candidate(s) is offered a position; this is based on the overall class profile and the match between the needs and qualifications of the student with the needs of the School. The date of application may also be a factor in this decision.

Offer of Placement

Enrolment at the School remains conditional until all formalities, payments and paperwork have been completed and returned. This includes the payment of Application and Enrolment Fees, the fees for the first term, the return of the Admission Contract, and the Medical Form duly signed by both parent and student.

Enrolment

Enrolment at the School is offered to students regardless of their race, religion or disability, on the following conditions:

• Parents must undertake to support the ethos of the School
• Parents must accept the conditions of the Admission Contract, including conditions related to the payment of fees and the student’s academic progress and behaviour
• The School will consider whether it is able to meet the student’s needs sufficiently, whether our programs will meet the developmental needs of the student, and by considering its capacity to take further enrolments and the availability of resources.

Any student accepted for enrolment must reside in a School boarding house or on a full time basis with their parents in Australia. Students who wish to live in a homestay arrangement during term time will not be accepted for enrolment.

Students with Disabilities &/or Additional Learning Needs

When there are available places and a student with a disability and/or additional learning needs seeks admission, particular care is taken to ensure that the application is properly considered by staff which may include, the Admissions Registrar, the School Counsellors, the Coordinators of Educational Support, Deputy Headmasters, Studies Officers, or representative, the parents, the student and outside specialists. In considering the application, the procedures listed below are followed:

• The application is discussed with the parents or caregivers and the student (depending on the age of the student)
• Detailed notes are kept of this meeting and of subsequent conversations and meetings
• Written permission may be sought from parents or caregivers for the School to investigate the student’s educational needs
• The Headmaster or Admissions Registrar will advise the parents or caregivers in an open, honest and straightforward manner of the services and facilities available within the School

• The School will take into account and may act upon if appropriate:
  • The parent’s views on the additional services and facilities that the student needs,
  • Verify information provided where necessary, such as reports from any Medical Practitioners or other professionals involved in treating or assisting the student
  • Any additional funding that might be available from the Commonwealth or State governments
• The student seeking enrolment may be observed in his present setting, and the teachers at the school presently attended may be consulted to ascertain the assistance the student is currently receiving. Advice may be sought about the services and facilities that may be needed in the future
• Further formal assessment of the student may be conducted by the School Counsellors and the School’s Coordinators of Educational Support, and an external child psychologist, if appropriate, may be involved at an early stage of the process.
• Any additional services and facilities that may be required will be quantified and costed
• It may be necessary to engage specialists in other fields including Auditory, Visual Impairment, and/or Occupational Therapist, building consultant or architect to cater for the needs of the individual, and to obtain detailed costing of modifications that may be needed.

If the student requires additional services and facilities because of the disability, and the provision of these services and facilities by the School would cause unjustifiable hardship, the enrolment may be declined by the Headmaster on that basis.

Breach of Policy

Should it be determined that a parent/guardian has not provided “full and frank disclosure” on the Admission Contract the School will:

• Invite the parents to a meeting to discuss the issue of the student’s needs that have now become apparent
• State the difficulties presented by the student’s needs, including, if appropriate, the detriment the School considers may be posed to the health, safety and wellbeing of others
• Discuss the history of these behaviours/needs and why they chose not to inform the School prior to enrolment
• Request a new application to be completed with full and frank disclosure providing specialist reports and any other medical documentation to assess the application
• Reserve the right to accept or decline the application based upon the new information.