Catholic Schools Office

What Catholic Schools Office does

St Mary's Primary School Armidale is a co-educational Catholic primary school operating under the Diocese of Armidale in New South Wales, Australia, serving students from Kindergarten through Year 6. Founded in 1848 and recognised as the oldest school in the Armidale Diocese, it operates within the broader Armidale Catholic Schools system, which spans approximately 20 schools across the New England region. The school delivers a NESA-aligned curriculum (English, Mathematics, Science, HSIE, Languages, Creative Arts, PDHPE) layered with mandatory Religious Education mandated by the Bishop of Armidale, supplemented by the proprietary 'Living Well, Learning Well' student wellbeing framework and a Centacare New England North West counselling partnership.

The school's revenue model is tuition-driven at A$1,980 per K-6 student per year, with declining marginal fees for siblings (up to 75% for the 6th child) and additional excursion fees ranging from A$400 to A$925 depending on year level. Enrolment follows a four-stage direct process — Application, Review, Agreement, Enrollment — managed through the Compass Education platform. Distribution is exclusively direct-to-consumer via parish referrals, school website, Facebook, and participation in regional events such as ANZAC Day and the New England Festival. Digital learning infrastructure includes Promethean Boards, Chromebooks, and iPads; school administration is supported by Compass (enrolment and SIS), Naavi (newsletter distribution), and Facebook (community engagement).

Governance transitioned from religious-order administration (Ursuline Sisters from 1882, Patrician Brothers 1889–1897, De La Salle Brothers 1906–1972) to lay administration under the Diocese in 2001. The school is led by Principal Belinda Burton, with no external investors, capital structure, or shareholders disclosed. It is a non-profit religious educational institution, and revenue/financial performance data is not publicly available in the source material.

Name

Catholic Schools Office

Legal name

St Mary's Primary School Armidale

Website

https://stmarysarmidale.catholic.edu.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1848

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

St Mary's Primary School Armidale is a Catholic K-6 co-educational primary school in Armidale, NSW, operated by the Diocese of Armidale. Founded in 1848, it delivers NESA-aligned curriculum, Bishop-mandated Religious Education, and wellbeing services to families in the New England region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Primary Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (61111), Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Faith-Based (Religious) K–12 Schools (EDAJABAC)

Keywords

• Primary education
• Catholic schooling
• K-6 education
• Religious education
• Primary school services

Headquarters

HQ city

Armidale

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Tuition Fees: Annual school fees charged for Kindergarten to Year 6 students. Fee schedule published for 2026 with sibling discounts applied.
2. Excursion Fees: Annual excursion fees for specific year levels including Year 4 Lake Keepit, Year 5 Coffs Harbour, and Year 6 Canberra trips.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

St Mary's Primary School Armidale is a Kindergarten to Year 6 co-educational Catholic primary school that delivers faith-based education through the NSW NESA curriculum combined with mandatory Religious Education, student wellbeing and counselling support, and cultural and sporting extra-curricular programs. The school charges annual tuition plus grade-specific excursion fees, manages enrolment directly through the Compass education platform, and operates as part of the Armidale Catholic Schools system under the Diocese of Armidale.

Product overview

St Mary's Primary School Armidale is a Kindergarten to Year 6 co-educational Catholic primary school operating as part of the Armidale Catholic Schools system. The school offers an integrated educational program combining NESA-aligned curriculum (English, Mathematics, Science, HSIE, Languages, Creative Arts, PDHPE) with mandatory Religious Education, student wellbeing services (Living Well, Learning Well framework), and counselling support via Centacare partnership. The school also provides cultural programs (choirs, orchestra, chess, art show) and representative sporting opportunities. Enrolment management is conducted through Compass Education platform, with communications via Compass portal, Naavi newsletter system, and Facebook social media.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Living Well, Learning Well: A student support framework developed by Armidale Catholic Schools, informed by research on pedagogy, inclusion, behaviour support, student voice, and child and adolescent psychology.

Products and services

• St Mary's Primary School Armidale (K-6 Enrolment) Kindergarten to Year 6 co-educational Catholic primary schooling delivered on the Armidale campus under the Diocese of Armidale, combining NSW curriculum with Catholic faith formation, wellbeing support, and cultural/sporting programs.
• Religious Education Program Mandatory K-6 Religious Education curriculum mandated by the Bishop of Armidale, founded on the Emmaus Story (Luke 24:13-35), delivered alongside the NSW curriculum to support faith formation.
• NSW Curriculum (K-6)

Quantifiable outcome

• Provides safe, caring, and nurturing environment for student holistic development

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Centacare New England North WestcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArmidale Catholic Schools has partnered with Centacare New England North West to provide qualified, caring school counselling services. Counsellors support young people in each school across the school year. All students have families have access to this free and confidential counselling service. In the event of a critical incident, Centacare deploys additional counsellors to support the affected school community.
• Compass EducationcoreTechnology or IntegrationSchool uses Compass education platform for online enrolment applications and ongoing parent-school communication. The platform handles self-registration for enrolments and provides access to the school's enrolment management system.
• NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA)coreOthersNESA is responsible for developing Kindergarten to Year 12 syllabuses for NSW schools. The school follows the NSW curriculum including Key Learning Areas of English, Mathematics, Science, HSIE, Languages, Technologies, Creative Arts, and PDHPE.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Catholic Schools NSW: State-level body representing Catholic schools across NSW; comparable in mission (faith-based K-12 delivery) and provides governance, advocacy and curriculum coordination that frames the operating environment for St Mary's.
• Busy Bees Australia: Major Australian operator of early learning and pre-primary centres; competes with K-6 schools for the same family segment in regional catchments and operates a comparable recurring tuition revenue model.
• Goodstart Early Learning: Australia's largest not-for-profit early childhood education provider; comparable in mission-driven education delivery, parent tuition model and curriculum-aligned service offering that competes for the same family segment.
• Association of Independent Schools NSW: Peak body for NSW independent (non-government) schools including Catholic schools; comparable in serving the same parent segment and addressing shared regulatory, funding and advocacy priorities.
• G8 Education Limited: ASX-listed operator of early learning and primary education centres across Australia; comparable in K-6 / early-education service delivery, multi-site operating model, and recurring tuition fee revenue dynamics.

Others

• Compass Education: School management software platform powering St Mary's enrolment, parent communication and student records; a key technology enabler for Catholic schools in the Diocese of Armidale and adjacent systems.

Direct peers

• St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Tamworth: Catholic K-6 primary school in the Diocese of Armidale system; operates under the same Diocesan governance, Living Well Learning Well framework, Compass enrolment and Centacare counselling arrangement as St Mary's Armidale.
• Armidale City Public School: Government primary school in Armidale offering the same K-6 catchment as St Mary's; the principal secular alternative competing for the same families on fees, curriculum and proximity.
• McAuley Catholic Primary School Inverell: Catholic primary school within the Diocese of Armidale; comparable faith-based K-6 model, shared Diocesan curriculum and student wellbeing framework, regional NSW catchment similar to St Mary's.
• O'Connor Catholic College: Catholic co-educational secondary school in Armidale operated by the same Diocese of Armidale; primary destination school for St Mary's graduates and shares Diocesan governance, Compass platform and Centacare counselling partnership.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/stmarysarmidale
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/catholic-schools-office

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Catholic Schools Office