School Saving Bonus

Further technical and support information to assist schools with implementing and managing the School Saving Bonus will be progressively added to this page.

Policy

The purpose of this policy is to ensure that School Saving Bonus funding is appropriately administered, and access for families is supported to help with education costs.

Summary

• The School Saving Bonus is a one-off $400 support for government school students from Prep to Year 12 in 2025, who are enrolled as at 18 October 2024.
• Non-government school students who are receiving the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) in 2024 are also eligible for the School Saving Bonus.
• The School Saving Bonus is provided to help with the costs of uniforms, textbooks and school activities.
• Schools must:
  • communicate to families the availability of the School Saving Bonus, noting the department will send template communications to schools
  • plan, oversee and record all financial activities associated with the School Saving Bonus
  • ensure the School Saving Bonus funds are used for the appropriate purposes.

To access School Saving Bonus information sheets for parents, including translated resources, refer to the Resources tab.

Details

School Saving Bonus eligibility

Government schools

The School Saving Bonus is available for parents and carers of each Victorian government school student from Prep to Year 12 in 2025 who is enrolled as at 18 October 2024. The school that the student is enrolled at for the 2025 school year on 18 October 2024 is the school that will receive the School Saving Bonus for that student.

The School Saving Bonus is not payable to full-fee international students, home schooled students, TAFE students and students attending kindergarten in 2025.

There is no application required for eligible government school parents to receive the School Saving Bonus – the bonus will be provided directly to the school in November 2024.

Non-government schools

Non-government school students receiving a payment from the means-tested Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) in 2024 are eligible for additional support through the School Saving Bonus. There is no application required for non-government school students to receive the bonus.

Non-government schools will receive funding based on the number of families eligible for the CSEF in November 2024, and are responsible for managing the distribution of funds to eligible students to assist with 2025 education costs.

Refer to Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund for further information on eligibility criteria and the application process for access to the CSEF.

School Saving Bonus expenditure

Government schools

For government school students, the $400 School Saving Bonus will be provided directly to the school.

Families will receive an email from the department with their $400 School Saving Bonus information and access to an online system. Families can choose how to use and allocate the $400 bonus – on school activities, to purchase uniforms or textbooks, or a mixture of all three.

If families choose to allocate funds to school activities, they will do so via the online system. Families will determine the amount to allocate, and the funds will then be available for the family to use at the school for activities.

The parent/carer can advise the school of their intention to use the School Saving Bonus when giving permission for their child to attend or participate in an activity.

Some common examples of school activities for which the School Saving Bonus may be used include:

• school camps, trips, excursions and incursions
• swimming and sporting programs
• outdoor education programs
• graduations
• school uniforms
• textbooks.

The School Saving Bonus cannot be used towards:

• activities required for the school’s delivery of the curriculum
• before/after school care
• locker hire
• classroom and homework materials
• formals or debutante balls.

Alternatively, the parent/carer can purchase uniforms and/or textbooks via an in-store or online purchase, with an approved supplier.

The bonus can be used to purchase second-hand items where the sale of items is managed by the school (that is, where the school is the supplier).

Generic uniform items, including shoes, can also be purchased through State Schools’ Relief.

The bonus cannot be used for purchases at general retailers (for example, Kmart, Big W, Best&Less) or to support transactions between individuals.

Online access to the School Saving Bonus will expire on 30 June 2025. Any balance remaining at this time will automatically transfer to family accounts at the school for families to use toward school activities. Families and schools do not need to action this transfer.

Funds will rollover for use in future years if not all spent in 2025.

Families who have more than one child at the same school can combine their School Saving Bonus to use on one child or for a specific activity (for example, a camp). The School Saving Bonus cannot be combined across different schools and cannot be transferred between government and non-government schools.

Unused money from the School Saving Bonus will follow students transferring between government schools. Where a student leaves the government school system any unused money can be transferred to a sibling at the same school. If there is no sibling, the funds can be retained by the school to support other students with educational costs.

Additional supports

The School Saving Bonus will be in addition to existing and continuing means-tested supports for Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) and the Affordable School Uniforms Program, through State Schools’ Relief. This helps to ensure that the families who need it most continue to get additional support.

Approved suppliers

The School Saving Bonus can be used until 30 June 2025 at school-nominated textbook or uniform suppliers either in store or online, or through State Schools’ Relief.

The school-nominated suppliers were determined by schools and the department and may include a school uniform or bookshop, where appropriate.
The School Saving Bonus will also be redeemable for purchasing second-hand uniforms and textbooks directly from schools.

Non-government schools

Payments for eligible non-government students will be made directly to the student’s school. Non-government schools are required to administer the School Saving Bonus in consultation with the student’s family and in accordance with the intent of the initiative. The allocation of the School Saving Bonus should be visible to families through a family statement or equivalent.

Communication with parents/carers

Schools must communicate the availability of the School Saving Bonus to their school community.

Schools may communicate using any communication tool that is suitable for their school context. This includes letters in the post, email, or using third party communication tools.

The Resources tab contains School Saving Bonus information to support schools with communicating to families.

Families who do not wish to access their School Saving Bonus

Families who do not want to use the School Saving Bonus provided for their child/children can elect to provide this money to the school for use for other students:

• Schools can allocate funds to be used to assist other students at the school within the scope of the School Saving Bonus (that is, school-incurred costs for camps, sports and excursions).
• Funds cannot be used for costs outside of the scope of the School Saving Bonus (that is, voluntary parent payments, school building/grounds improvements or stationery items).
• Schools must retain records of the parent request to reallocate funding.

Record keeping

School Saving Bonus records are treated as financial records that detail the receipt and expenditure of public monies. Schools must retain the records and documents relating to the School Saving Bonus for 7 years (as set out in the Retention and Disposal Authority for Records of Common Administrative Functions, issued by the Public Records Office Victoria).

Schools must also securely store CSEF records during the 7-year document retention period. For more information about security of storage refer to: Records Management – School Records.

Definitions

School Saving Bonus
A one-off bonus provided by the department to assist families with the cost of school uniforms, textbooks and participation in school activities, such as excursions and sport.

Related policies

• Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund
• Financial Help for Families
• Mature Minors and Decision Making
• Parent Payments
• Privacy and Information Sharing
• Records Management – School Records
• State Schools' Relief

Guidance

This guidance contains the following chapters:

• Direct deposit to school
• Acquittal
• Accessing the School Saving Bonus
• Dual/shared enrolment
• Shared parent/carer arrangements
• Students changing schools
• Students completing Year 12 or leaving the school system

Direct deposit to school

All School Saving Bonus funds are paid directly to a school’s high yield account. Schools’ bank details are stored in the accounts payable system and payment will be made accordingly.

Government schools will receipt this money to the respective parent/carer through CASES21 in accounts receivable via the SSB 70008 message and an auto-allocate journal.

Schools must notify Schools Finance and Resources Branch in writing as soon as possible if their Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) details change at schools.finance.support@education.vic.gov.au

Acquittal

At government schools, the CASES21 system allows School Saving Bonus expenditure to be allocated against eligible students’ expenses.

When a School Saving Bonus payment is deposited into a school’s high yield account, schools must run the process to receipt the School Saving Bonus payment against the family account.

The family statement has a column indicating School Saving Bonus receipts. Schools can then allocate the School Saving Bonus payment to the appropriate costs.

If schools administer in accordance with guidelines, then no further reporting will be required on the School Saving Bonus to acquit funds.

Further advice on the processing of supplier invoices will be provided.

Non-government schools may have different systems in place. It is the responsibility of the school to ensure that their systems can allocate School Saving Bonus against eligible students' expenses.

Accessing the School Saving Bonus

Families of eligible government school students will receive an email from the Department of Education in November 2024 with a School Saving Bonus code and a link to a School Saving Bonus online system.

The family will be able to allocate bonus funds from the online system to be spent at the school to pay for activities.

The bonus can also be used in store or online with an approved supplier. If using the bonus online, the family will be prompted to select an amount and a supplier via the online system. The system will then generate a code for the family to use at the supplier’s online store.

Dual/shared school enrolment

Where a student is enrolled in 2 government schools, the school that has the highest enrolment percentage will be paid the School Saving Bonus for that child. The family should discuss with the main or base school if items at the other school are required.

Shared parent/carer arrangements

If parents/carers are separated, the parent or carer listed as the primary contact on the student’s enrolment record at the school will receive the School Saving Bonus credit to their account, and the email in November 2024 with the School Saving Bonus code.

Students changing schools

The school that the student is enrolled at for the 2025 school year on 18 October 2024 is the school that will receive the School Saving Bonus for that student.

If a government student transfers to another Victorian government school:

• unspent School Saving Bonus funds should be transferred to the student’s new school. A funds transfer would typically require the initiating school to create a CASES21 Family Payment and then arrange for the unspent portion to be transferred to the new school via a bank transfer
• if the unspent amount is minimal, the schools may agree that the funds are not transferred if the new school commits to providing the student with assistance to the value of the unspent amount.

If a government student transfers to a Victorian non-government school, there is no requirement for the School Saving Bonus to be transferred.

Students completing Year 12 or leaving the government school system

For students completing Year 12 or otherwise leaving the government school system:

• schools may allocate unspent funds to the student's siblings attending the same school once the student leaves school
• any remaining School Saving Bonus that is not used by siblings will stay with the school. Schools can allocate funds to assist other students at the school within the scope of the School Saving Bonus (that is, school-incurred costs for camps, sports and excursions). This may include students that did not receive the School Saving Bonus (for example, students enrolling from interstate after the eligibility deadline).

Resources

Schools must provide information to families about the School Saving Bonus. To learn more, download the:

• Information sheet for principals and school leaders (DOCX)
• Information sheet for parents and carers (DOCX)
• Template school community newsletter text (DOCX)
• Poster for parents and carers (PDF)
• Letter from the Premier and Deputy Premier (PDF) about the School Saving Bonus for parents and carers of students attending a government school in 2025.