Dutch school spending per pupil has doubled since 1995, results have not

Real spending on each pupil in Dutch primary and secondary schools has roughly doubled since 1995, State Secretary Tielen told the Tweede Kamer in written answers received on 2 November. She agreed that learning results are under pressure. "This is worrying," she said.

Spending per pupil has roughly doubled since 1995

€ per pupil, 2024 prices

Spending per pupil has roughly doubled since 1995 (€ per pupil, 2024 prices). Highest: Secondary pupil, 7,500; lowest: Primary pupil, 5,700; 2 items. Source: State Secretary Tielen, answers to parliamentary questions.

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Data: Spending per pupil has roughly doubled since 1995

Item	1995	2024
Primary pupil	5,700	11,900
Secondary pupil	7,500	15,300

Tielen said the extra money went largely to making teaching a more attractive job, for example through pay rises and measures to reduce workload.

As a share of the economy, spending grew far less: from 3.2% to 3.5% of GDP over 30 years. Tielen said spending rose in line with prosperity, as expected in a labour-intensive sector where about 80% of spending goes to staff.

Around 2012 the Netherlands was still a leader in reading internationally. Since 2022 it has scored clearly below the OECD average. Maths scores have also fallen, though Dutch pupils still score above the international average, she said.

Reading and maths results first declined gradually from 2003 to 2015. A strong downward trend followed for reading from 2015 and for maths between 2018 and 2022. Investments to improve results have been made since 2021.

Statistics Netherlands (CBS) figures show €19.2bn more was spent on primary and secondary education in 2024 than in 1995, after correcting for inflation. The ministry could not reproduce a calculation that €17.2bn of this came from policy changes.

Tielen said more must be got out of the money already available. She pointed to her Versterkingsagenda Taal en andere basisvaardigheden, a plan to strengthen language and other basic skills, which she has sent to parliament.