Girls' school's plan to switch to the direct subsidy scheme divides parents

Legislator Regina Ip Lau Shuk-yee is a former student, as is former Executive Councillor Rosanna Wong Yick-ming and actress Sandra Ng Kwan-yu. St Stephen's Girls' College boasts a long list of famous alumni. But the government-funded school has been drawing attention recently for another reason - its application to switch to the direct subsidy scheme (DSS).

The proposal has stirred controversy as never before in the school's 100-year history, dividing parents and alumni. While some staged protests against the move, others wrote to legislators in support of the plan.

The DSS was introduced in 1991 to inject diversity into the local education system. It gives schools autonomy in management, and some independence in setting fees and curriculum, while receiving a subsidy for each student who is enrolled.

But in recent years, a steady stream of top government schools making the switch - St Paul's Co-educational College, and Diocesan Boys' and Diocesan Girls' schools among them - has roused growing concern that the trend will widen inequality in educational opportunities.

School fees are certainly higher among elite DSS schools: DBS, for example, now charges HK$40,000 for its primary section and HK$38,000 for its secondary section each year (HK$62,000 for its International Baccalaureate stream). St Stephen's Girls is proposing annual fees of HK$35,000 for its secondary students and HK$30,000 for its primary intake.

DSS schools are obliged to set aside at least 10 per cent of fees received for scholarships and fee remission. But as a critical 2010 Auditor's Report found, several schools failed to do so; one college instead invested HK$71 million in equities and other instruments. DSS schools have since improved transparency and placed details of relief assistance on their websites.