Victoria
Victoria to meet Gonski public school funding obligations
Premier Ben Carroll has committed Victoria to fully meeting its public school funding obligations under the original Gonski reform standards.
Victoria's new premier, Ben Carroll, has committed the state government to fully meeting its funding obligations for public schools under the landmark Gonski education standards.
The commitment, which marks a significant policy pledge for the new leader, was confirmed according to reporting by a national wire service. The move signals a renewed focus on state education funding as government school systems face ongoing resource pressures.
Under the Gonski funding model, which was designed to establish a consistent, needs-based funding standard across Australian schools, states and the federal government share the responsibility of lifting public schools to a recommended baseline. Public education advocates have long campaigned for Victoria to close the remaining funding gap to ensure all government schools reach the full schooling resource standard.
Details regarding the exact timeline for the funding increase and the total cost to the state budget remain unconfirmed. State officials have not yet released specific figures on how the transition to the full Gonski standards will be phased in over the coming school years.
The decision is expected to be welcomed by teachers' unions and public education advocates, who have repeatedly called for state governments to lift their share of funding to the agreed levels. How the federal government will cooperate with Victoria to finalise the bilateral funding agreement is yet to be seen.
Education advocates and school communities will now watch for the release of the state's next budget update to see how the funding transition will be structured.
This report draws on original reporting by Wire report.
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