THANK YOU HELOISE!!
If you look at the OP results for Queensland Schools, some of the State High schools are right up there. I was comparing schools a couple of years ago and a school (I won't name) had half the facilities of a State School, was ranked almost 40 on the OP school list. YET the uniform was pretty, porsches and bmw's dropped the kids off and all the little girls did ballet (whether they liked it or not). My guess is ballet is good for deportment purposes, poise etc.. In other words snobbery. In my opinion, in Brisbane, private schools are very much a status thing. I do think Status was important to Allison and Gerard.