Low interest in charter school conversions

The latest round of charter school applications has had just six expressions of interest from state schools looking to convert.

Last year the government had allocated funding for up to 35 state schools to convert to the charter model, and 15 brand new charter schools to operate. The first round was competitive, with 78 new charter school applications and four expressions of interest from state schools looking to convert. Two of those are now making their way through the application round. 

Seven new charter schools began operating at the beginning of the year. 

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No state school conversions have yet been announced. Associate Education Minister David Seymour said he expected the state schools looking to convert would be operating in 2026 due to a complicated conversation process.  

The initial deadline for the 2026 round of charter school conversion applications passed in April but was extended. This extension has since also elapsed.  

The Charter School Agency (CSA) has not disclosed how many applications there are from state schools looking to convert to charters, but no more than eight converted charter schools will open their doors in 2026. 

Seymour said the low interest from state schools may be because charter schools are “an unfamiliar concept. 

“I think what is important is that you’ve got a whole lot of children who are getting a totally different education experience. You’ve got educators who are able to do things differently. And the numbers are growing. I think all that is positive.”  

The next new charter school is due to begin operations in July. 

This story has been amended.

An earlier version incorrectly stated that 40 state schools expressed interest in converting to charter schools in the initial funding found. Only four state schools expressed interest in conversion for the initial funding round. The story and headline has been updated to reflect this.