The Victorian Government is helping Victorian kids get a world class education by growing the teaching workforce across the state.
On Sunday 15 December, Deputy Premier and education minister Ben Carroll with children minister Lizzie Blandthorn released the Victorian Teacher Workforce Snapshot for 2023, formerly known as the Teacher Supply and Demand Report, which shows the outlook for the supply of teachers in the state over the coming years has improved.
The report provides a snapshot of Victoria’s school and early childhood teaching workforces, using data to forecast whether there will be sufficient teachers to meet demand through to 2029.
“Victoria is home to the most talented teachers in the nation and only Labor Governments back them with the resources they need to do an excellent job,” Deputy Premier said.
“I want more Victorians to pursue a career in education which is why we’re backing them with the resources they need to do an excellent job – and this report shows our investment is paying off.
“Teachers are the bedrock of our education system. This report provides a detailed look at our workforce, allowing us to continue to drive the growth of our top-class teaching workforce.”
Fresh data shows Victoria has made progress on growing the supply of teachers – showing workforce initiatives and incentives continue to see results.
Early childhood and primary school settings are forecast to meet demand by 2029 and there have been positive trends in high school education numbers.
The positive trend has been underpinned by the state government’s investments in schools and early childhood workforce initiatives.
The government has invested more than $1.6 billion in school workforce initiatives since 2019.
Key initiatives include secondary teaching scholarships, paid placements for pre-service teachers, employment-based teaching degree programs for undergraduates, targeted financial incentives for hard-to-staff roles and the expansion of supports for early-career teachers.
There has been a 23 per cent increase in student teachers enrolling in secondary undergraduate education courses through VTAC compared to 2023, thanks to the ambitious scholarship scheme.
The government will continue to work closely with any schools experiencing immediate workforce pressures ahead of the 2025 school year.
The Victorian Government is also investing almost $370 million in a range of initiatives to attract and retain quality early childhood teachers and educators to deliver the Best Start, Best Life reforms including scholarships, financial incentives and career supports.
“We have made significant investments in initiatives to grow and support the kindergarten workforce as we roll out our Best Start, Best Life reforms in partnership with the early childhood sector,” minister Blandthorn said.
“The growth we’re seeing in early childhood teachers demonstrates the success of this investment, with a 10.2 per cent increase in registered early childhood teachers from 2023 to 2024.”
Since 2019, the number of early childhood teachers and educators delivering funded kindergarten programs across the state has grown by more than 50 per cent.
