Victorian Government Schools to receive full funding of the SRS
On 24 January it was announced that the Commonwealth Government has agreed to lift its funding to Victorian Government schools from 20% to 25% of the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS). In effect this means that after years of lobbying, schools will be provided with 100% of full funding by the end of the agreement in 2034.
It is estimated that this will see around $2.5 billion in additional funding over the next 10 years to government schools across Victoria. Minister Carroll’s media announcement states that this will include ‘more individualised support for students, mandating evidence-based teaching practices and more mental health support in schools.’
The full media announcement can be accessed and is available here.
The funding announcement does not come without strings attached and does include certain conditions. The announced agreement is to be followed by a Bilateral Agreement which ties the funding to specific reforms such as the compulsory Year 1 phonics test and early years numeracy check.
In addition to the reforms, the agreement gives commitment to national targets, these being:
Increasing the proportion of students leaving school with a Year 12 certificate by 7.5 percentage points (nationally) by 2030.
Reducing the proportion of students in the NAPLAN ‘Needs Additional Support’ proficiency level for reading and numeracy nationally by 10 per cent.
Increasing the proportion of students in the ‘Strong’ and ‘Exceeding’ proficiency levels for reading and numeracy by 10 per cent by 2030 and trend upwards for priority equity cohorts in the ‘Strong’ and ‘Exceeding’ proficiency levels nationally.
Increasing the Student Attendance Rate, nationally, to 91.4 per cent (2019 level) by 2030.
Increasing the engagement rate (completed or still enrolled) of initial teacher education students by 10 percentage points to 69.7 per cent by 2035.
(Extract from Minister Carroll media release available here.)
The APF, along with other key stakeholders and groups, has been a strong advocate for ensuring that our schools receive the full SRS funding, and we welcome this announcement. However, a key concern remains that, while the Commonwealth provides funding to states and territories, the responsibility for distributing these funds lies with the Victorian Government. There is uncertainty and conjecture regarding whether the funding will be allocated directly to schools or managed at the system level, which will influence how schools access and utilise these resources.
We look forward to receiving further details and clarification from the Victorian Government upon the finalisation of the formal agreement. Importantly, we seek assurance that the full SRS funding will be distributed fairly and equitably across all schools.