The survey, conducted by The Smith Family, shows 64 per cent of those polled felt that education costs were too high for their families.

The Smith Family Tasmania general manager Lesley Mackay said the results showed a “hidden poverty” that was partly due to an increasing “digital divide” among parents and carers.

Census data from 2016 showed the median weekly income for Tasmanian families was $1399.

Of the families recorded in Tasmania for the Census, 38.2 per cent were couple families with children and 17.4 per cent were one-person families.

“No parent wants their child to start the school year feeling isolated from their peers because they don’t have a decent uniform, school bag or shoes,” Ms Mackay said.

“They don’t want their kids feeling left out from school activities because they can’t afford sport or excursions.”

In 2016 there were 26,810 families in Tasmania where both of the parents or carers didn’t work. 

However, the average household make-up was a couple with children, where one person worked full-time and the other worked part-time. 

Those families made up 22.7 per cent of Tasmania’s family population. 

Overall, in all its forms, families in Tasmania make up 38.2 per cent of the state’s population.

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Ms Mackay said the survey polled more than 1000 Australians and provided context to the increasing digital divide experienced by many families.

“These days, parents also have to factor in the costs of technology for their children’s education – things like laptops and internet access. For many families these can be quite unaffordable,” she said.

“We know, for example, that nearly a third of the students on our sponsorship program don’t have a computer at home that’s connected to the internet. We hear of students struggling to keep up at school because they don’t have the tools they need to study or get their homework done.”

Ms Mackay said the deepening “digital divide” was compounding the challenges for students whose families could not afford the technology they need for school.

The Smith Family offers sponsorship for families who need a bit of extra help and can give financial assistance to buy education essentials.

It can also offer assistance in the form of personal support and out-of-school learning and mentoring programs such as its reading program and after-school learning clubs.

Tasmanian children enrolled in public schools return next week, when term one starts on February 6. Teachers will return earlier, with professional development days slated for February 4.

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