Victoria and the Commonwealth signed a long-term public school funding agreement on Wednesday, setting out increases in both governments’ contributions while school leaders warned that support was needed sooner. The Australian Government’s announcement of the agreement confirmed the deal was signed on 21 October, with shared commitments to improve student outcomes and deliver school reforms across Victoria.
The state and federal funding timetables are different. Under the signed bilateral agreement, Victoria’s scheduled contribution reaches 75 per cent of the Schooling Resource Standard in 2031. The Commonwealth’s contribution rises from 20 per cent in 2026 to 25 per cent by 2034. The state reaching its own share does not mean the combined funding target has been reached.
The agreement also leaves room for Victoria to accelerate its contribution, with an aim of reaching 75 per cent by 2029. That is not an unconditional earlier deadline: the document says the timing and extent of any acceleration will be determined by the state government, subject to its budget position and the needs of students and schools.
The standard stems from the Gonski review of school funding in 2012. The ABC reported that Premier Ben Carroll confirmed Victoria would lift its contribution to 75 per cent after cabinet signed off on the move this week. The new long-term agreement covers 2027 to 2034, replacing the need to rely only on the preceding shorter-term arrangements.
The Australian Principals Federation welcomed the deal but said full funding remained years away, according to the ABC’s report. Its Victorian branch president, Andrew Cock, said schools faced immediate challenges and called for meaningful funding increases to arrive progressively, rather than leaving schools waiting until the end of the period.
Australian Education Union Victorian branch president Justin Mullaly also welcomed the certainty and increases while criticising their timing. As reported by The Age, which offers subscription access, he said Victorian public schools would receive some additional funding later than schools in other states and territories. He warned that the back-ended arrangement would leave schools short of funding in the intervening years.
The ABC illustrated the pressures through Pembroke Primary School in Melbourne’s outer east, where it reported a potholled basketball court had been out of use for two years. School council treasurer James Dunn told the broadcaster the school could not afford repairs and students were missing out on camps and extracurricular activities because money was tight.
Alongside the funding schedules, the agreement identifies priorities including teaching and learning, secondary student engagement, support for the school workforce and schools’ role in their communities. It allows Victoria to direct additional Commonwealth funding towards schools with the highest levels of need through its needs-based arrangements, including funding, resources and central or regional support services.
