The new school year underway last month marks the beginning of a 13-year spending spree by parents for primary and secondary education, according to the results of research announced by Hibernian Life & Pensions today, Tuesday 3 October.
The new school year underway last month marks the beginning of a 13-year spending spree by parents for primary and secondary education, according to the results of research announced by Hibernian Life & Pensions today, Tuesday 3 October.
The research shows that, on average, the non-fee cost which parents will face for their children’s education in 2006 is €579 for a child in primary school and €970 for a child in secondary school. For those parents whose children continue education at third level, the non-fee cost is estimated to be around €4,626 on average per student per annum. Based on this research the cost to parents of supporting a child in full-time education, will equal €27,986[i] by the time they graduate. The costs were estimated by parents, based on the common items they need to purchase for their school going children such as shirts/blouses, trousers, skirts, shoes, jumpers and books.
Gareth McQuillan, director of product development and marketing, Hibernian Life & Pensions said: “Our research shows that the cost of sending a child to school or college can be a significant strain on a family’s budget, especially for families with two or more children. Getting into the savings habit when their child first starts going to school though should alleviate some of the cost of education for parents, at least at third level. We estimate that the cost of a four-year college degree in 2019 will be around €31,000[ii] adjusting for inflation. The good news for parents though is that by investing €124.00 per month, they should be in a better position to fund their five-year through college when the time comes.”
The estimated monthly premium required to build-up a fund for a four-year college course in thirteen years time, assuming inflation of 4%, is detailed below.
| Monthly premiums required to fund €31,000[iii] | ||
| Term of Hibernian Spectrum Saver Plus plan | Monthly premium based on 6% growth and 5% indexation | Monthly premium based on 6% growth and NO indexation |
| 13 year term | €123.38 | €163.49 |
This is the third year of the research, which was carried out for Hibernian by Behaviour & Attitudes, an independent research agency. Hibernian Life & Pensions also carried out similar research in 2003 and 2005. The cost of educating students at third level has increased from €4,267 in 2003. However, at primary and secondary level, these costs are reducing according to parents’ estimates. In comparison with 2003 data, the primary school costs have declined from €666 to €579 and at secondary level from €1,120 to €970.
The research also probes parents’ views on the importance of technology in the home for their children’s education. 71% of parents confirm that they have a PC or Laptop in the home and 87% felt that this would be essential or beneficial for their children’s education.
Other findings from the Hibernian’s research were:
- Among parents who have a child in primary school, around three in 10 will have an additional child at secondary school and only 3% have one at third level.
- Among adults with children at school or college, two-thirds are currently saving.
- Over a child’s school lifetime - totalling 13 years - their parents will have to pay on average for 39 shirts or blouses, 26 pairs of trousers or skirts, 26 jumpers and 26 pairs of shoes.
- There were some interesting differences in the costs of educating boys versus girls. At primary school level the costs are broadly similar, however girls are more expensive to educate at secondary school (€989 versus €896) and at college (€4,625 versus €4,274).
- There are currently over 800,000 students in full-time education in Ireland, 473,000 in primary school, 255,000 in secondary school and the remainder in third level. Just over a quarter of all adults have at least one child at school or university. However, 60% of 35 to 50 year-olds have a child in either school or at college.
Hibernian also asked those parents with children under the age of six if they will save some of the Government Early Childcare Supplement of €250 per quarter, which has been introduced towards childcare costs. Among this group, the evidence suggests that only 13% of them believe they "definitely will" save this money to use for their child’s education in the future. A further 22% claim they ‘probably will’. About half claim they will not.
Hibernian Life & Pensions reported 17% growth in Life new business APE basis in 2005. It employs over 800 people in Ireland. Its activities include pensions and life assurance, managing investments, general insurance and personal financial services.
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Press contact:
Marie Therese Culligan, 01 617 8164, 087 2367008, marietherese.culligan@hibernian.ie
Notes to editors:
i The figure of €27,986 does not include allowance for inflation or population changes. It assumes eight years in primary school, five in secondary school and four years in college.
ii This figure assumes that today’s five-year old will be attending college in thirteen years time for four years and that the cost will be €4,626 per year adjusted for inflation at 4%.
iii These illustrations assume a return of 6.00% per annum. This rate is for illustrative purposes only and is not guaranteed. Actual investment growth will depend on the performance of the underlying investments and may be more or less than illustrated.
Hibernian is a subsidiary of Aviva plc, the world’s fifth-largest insurance group and the UK’s largest insurance services provider. Aviva’s principal business activities are long-term savings, fund management and general insurance, with worldwide total sales of £35 billion and assets under management of £317 billion at 31 December 2005.
Hibernian news releases are also available on www.hibernian.ie