At Northcote High School, where many parents were already suffering the financial burden of fees on increasingly meagre incomes, enrolments at the school had fallen from 506 in 1931 to 449 in 1932. They were about to suffer a further onslaught. The bad news had clearly begun circulating by late 1932 when a Mrs J Street wrote to the school to check whether 'it is proposed to charge fees to High School students under 14 years of age'.¹⁸ Yes, came the reply from the Education Department's secretary. 'Parliamentary approval is now being sought to charge a fee of £3 per annum to pupils of Form F (Year 7).' Those students who stayed on past year 8 would now have to pay £9 in tuition fees a year.¹⁹

Parents who had found it difficult to find £6 a year for their children's education now found it impossible. Those who previously could have sent their children to the high school for years 7 and 8 for free were now forced to consider other options. Mr AJ Stanton of Preston wrote to the school on 17 January 1933 saying that while his twelve-year-old son Keith was ready to move on to the high school, there was no way he could afford the fees. 'My whole income last year was only £197/141, and will be less this year.'

There were no fees for children who stayed on until year 8 at the local primary school, but this was not an option that Mr Stanton was enthusiastic about. His letter voices the frustration that many families no doubt felt at the time: 'I would like to know if my son is to return to the State School for another two years to learn nothing, or will he be allowed to wander the streets for the next two years until he is eligible to work according to the law of the State of Victoria?'

What was most frustrating was that over the border, in New South Wales, children could continue to attend high school for free. Jack Lang, the feisty Labor premier who vowed to renege on loans to England rather than cut back on public expenditure, refused to charge fees for education. William Henshall, who had recently arrived from New South Wales when he wrote to the headmaster of Northcote High on 24 July 1934, pointed out that there 'they were educated by the State, no school fees, all text books and writing materials supplied', whereas 'we will have to make great sacrifices to educate our children in this state'.

Of course those who suffered financial hardship could always apply for a fee exemption, the Education Department pointed out.²⁰ The new Act allowed for fee exemptions for students whose parents were in 'necessitous circumstances' and who were, in the opinion of the Director, able to profit from their education.²¹

'Necessitous circumstances' as defined by the Department meant an average weekly income of less than £4, with an extra 10 shillings allowed for each school child under the age of 14. The income of any working children was added to the weekly family income. Parents had to prove their financial hardship on a form provided by the Department that required them to set out exactly how much they earned, their expenditure on rent or mortgage, the value of their home and any other savings or investments (with grave warnings of punishment for false declarations). Then they had to prove that their children would profit from their education: the child's teacher was required to detail the child's academic results thus far and give any other supporting reasons as to why the child deserved assistance to stay on.²²