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The Australian Education Union is calling for all public schools to be fully funded by 2028 to lift the one-on-one support children receive in the classroom and give teachers the time and resources to meet the needs of every child.

“Ensuring every child has the opportunity to reach their potential can only be realised through a fully funded public school system,” said AEU Federal President Correna Haythorpe.

The shocking disparity in funding for private schools and public schools, revealed today, shows the urgent need for greater public school funding. 

“Public schools enrol the overwhelming majority of Australian students and enrol a greater proportion of students with additional needs,” said Australian Education Union Deputy Federal President Meredith Peace.

“And yet, as this data shows, public schools are being left behind due to inequitable funding arrangements. 

The Australian Education Union Victorian Branch says the alarming findings of the Victorian Auditor-General’s report are a warning sign that urgent measures need to be taken to avoid principal burnout and a mass exodus from the profession.

The report shows that despite the Department introducing a range of important initiatives to tackle principal health and wellbeing, principal workloads remain a critical problem, causing ongoing harm.

The full extent of the inequity in Australia’s school funding system has been exposed, with internal Department of Education figures showing a massive overfunding of private schools.

The figures are included in a departmental briefing prepared for witnesses appearing before Senate Estimates, publicly released through freedom of information.

The briefing states that 1,152 private schools will be overfunded to the tune of $3.2 billion over and above their public funding entitlement under the Schooling Resource Standard.

The Australian Education Union Victorian branch has achieved a significant win that will see the Victorian government providing an additional $130 million for school budgets over four years to resolve the school camp time in lieu ‘off duty’ dispute heard before the Fair Work Commission.

The Australian Education Union Victorian Branch is urging the Victorian Opposition to commit to funding public schools in Victoria to a minimum of 100% of the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS), a commitment that is long overdue.

Branch President Meredith Peace said that the staggering difference between private and public school funding in the state should serve as a reminder to major parties every day that public school students are being systematically shortchanged by governments.

Every Australian is invited to join the celebration of public education day by sharing their #ProudToBePublic story on social media.

The Australian Education Union Victorian Branch has condemned the Victorian Government’s decision to cut public school funding, its failure to invest in the workforce to address teacher shortages and the neglect of TAFE in yet another state budget.

“It’s disappointing that the Victorian Government has chosen to cut funding from public schools and TAFE in this year’s budget,” said Meredith Peace, Australian Education Union Victorian Branch President.

The Australian Education Union has welcomed the establishment of the National Respectful Relationships Education Expert Working Group to support the implementation of the Federal Government’s Consent and Respectful Relationships Education program. 

“Improving the safety of women and children in Australia is the responsibility of all members of our community, but teachers, principals and education support personnel play a particularly important role,” AEU Federal President Correna Haythorpe said. 

The Australian Education Union and the Australian Council of TESOL Associations are jointly calling for English as an Additional Language or Dialect education in schools to be made an equity priority in the next National Schools Reform Agreement.

AEU Federal President Correna Haythorpe said a renewed focus on prioritising high quality English language education and literacy provision in Australia is crucial to enhancing the skills of students from non-English speaking backgrounds.