I am pleased to introduce the Department of Education’s (the department) Strategic Plan for 2023–27. Our vision is simple: we want every child and young person to receive a great education so they can thrive now and in the future, so Victoria can be a fairer, smarter and more prosperous state. Education is the cornerstone of our society and economy.

We all have an important part to play in making sure Victorian early childhood education services and schools are the best they can be. Our job in regional and central operations is to support their efforts through designing, delivering and improving the systems and supports they need to do their jobs well.

Our new strategic plan outlines the department’s vision, guiding principles and outcomes, as well as focus areas and foundations. It is underpinned by our public sector values. For the first time, we consulted with people at all levels of the department in its development. Your knowledge and expertise have been vital, and I thank everyone who contributed time and ideas to make this plan better.

Our work will be guided by powerful new principles. We want to be known for our passion and curiosity, alongside our expert knowledge and skills. We want our partners and stakeholders to collaborate with us to solve problems. Seeing the whole picture, working together and adapting to deliver will be characteristic of the way we go about our work.

Our department’s revised remit focuses us on improving outcomes for children and young people. And as we work together with our First Nations communities to deliver the Victorian Government’s commitment to Voice, Treaty and Truth, our ambition for Victoria’s Aboriginal children and young people has never been greater.

The expansion of early learning will transform education in this state. By investing in high-quality early childhood education and care we are giving all Victorian children the very best start in life. Central to this is the expansion of Free Kinder programs for all 3- and 4-year-old children in participating services across the state, which was introduced in 2023.

In a new role for the department, from 2025 we are delivering 50 Victorian government-owned and operated early learning centres, which will make it easier for families to access high-quality, low-fee education and care services.

The new investments in early childhood education will also strengthen the connections and transitions between kindergarten and school.

Victoria’s National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) scores point to real strengths and improvement trends for our school system, as well as areas for renewed effort. The Framework for Improving Student Outcomes (FISO) 2.0 guides our schools to continue to focus on excellence in learning and also on student wellbeing. The department has a strong program of support for health and wellbeing. Central to this is the rollout of our mental health, wellbeing and disability inclusion reforms.

Our senior secondary pathways reforms will continue to better prepare students for either work or further education and training, and disability inclusion will support every student, of every ability, to thrive at school and in life.

We need to recruit more teachers and educators and retain the ones we have. The department is undertaking a comprehensive program of work to build and maintain a sustainable pipeline of teachers and educators, and to support existing staff. 

I am confident that this strategic plan will help every team in the department work more effectively. At an executive level, it will provide the guardrails for high-impact investment and implementation decisions. I look forward to engaging and collaborating with partners and stakeholders across our sectors to see this strategic plan come to life over the next 4 years.

What we do

As of January 2023, the department has a consolidated focus on achieving education outcomes for children and young people across Victoria. The department provides a wide range of learning and development support and services.

The department provides policy leadership, plans for the future of education in Victoria and leads key cross-sector collaboration. The department plays an important system steward role by providing support, guidance, oversight and assurance across early childhood and school education systems, as well as directly providing school education and 50 new early learning centres.

Early childhood (birth to 8)

• Early childhood education and care services, with a focus on kindergarten programs
• More than 400,000 children and families
• 140,000 children in kindergarten programs
• More than 4,900 approved education and care services of all types
• 2,900 funded kindergarten services

School education (5 to 18)

• Primary education
• Secondary education
• Special education
• Language
• More than 1,032,000 students
  • approximately 654,000 students in government schools
  • approximately 213,000 students in Catholic schools
  • approximately 165,000 students in independent schools
• 1,566 government schools
• 724 non-government schools

Who we work with

The department and its portfolio entities work collaboratively with a diverse range of public, private and not-for-profit providers serving Victorian children and young people. 

Education portfolio partners and authorities include:

• Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority
• Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority
• Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership
• Victorian Institute of Teaching
• Merit Protection Boards & Disciplinary Appeals Boards

Key stakeholder groups include:

• Early childhood and school education peak bodies
• Industry associations and unions
• Advocacy and special interest groups
• Government departments and agencies
• Early childhood and school education experts
• Parents and students
   

Our vision

A great education for every child and young person - so they can thrive now, and in the future, for a fairer, smarter and more prosperous state.

Our outcomes 

Our outcomes clarify the impact we want to see from the collective efforts of the department.

Outcome 1

Learning & development: Excellent learning and development outcomes. Strong engagement and wellbeing for all Victorian children and young people. 

Why it matters: Learning and development are central to our ambition for education services and support. The evidence shows a strong sense of wellbeing enables children to engage positively and confidently with their environment and take full advantage of learning opportunities. Quality of teaching matters for year-on-year student progression and achievement, and for child development more broadly.

Outcome 2

Equity & inclusion: Equitable and inclusive education and care for all Victorian children and young people.

Why it matters: Every child and young person has the fundamental human right to education, so that they can fully participate in society and achieve their potential. Many learners face significant barriers to their learning and development that are outside their control and too often affect their life outcomes. Targeted and effective support is needed to ensure education is equitable and inclusive, so that every child and young person can thrive.

Outcome 3

Pathways & opportunities: Children and young people have pathways through education to future careers. Victorian parents and carers are supported to participate in the workforce. 

Why it matters: The individual journey through education settings looks different for every child and young person. It is important that pathways are in place for every learner to reach a variety of careers they may aspire to. Helping parents and carers to work and study supports their economic participation, their goals for themselves and their families, and has a positive influence on their children’s aspirations and the pathways they choose to take.

Our objectives¹

Objective 1: Raise development outcomes of 3 and 4-year-old children prior to attending school

Objective 2: Raise learning, development, engagement and wellbeing outcomes for all Victorian students

Objective 3: Provide equitable and inclusive schooling to all Victorian students.

Guiding principles

Our guiding principles describe how we will approach our work and the culture we will foster.

Hearts in, minds on – we bring our passion, knowledge and skills to improve outcomes.

Why it matters: Our people are passionate and knowledgeable, and we want to encourage every person to bring their whole self to work. When we put our ‘hearts in’ and ‘minds on’ it means we are authentic and make connections that are positive and impactful.

Our best work matters – we do high-quality work that matters to people’s lives.

Why it matters: Our efforts to do high-quality work mean we follow the steps to get it right, we involve the right people and we hold ourselves to the highest standards. This approach to delivering high-quality work directly leads to greater impact.

Be curious and work together – we listen, collaborate and value challenge and diversity.

Why it matters: Our inclusive and collaborative approach to working with our colleagues, partners and stakeholders brings in different perspectives and builds confidence. This is important for arriving at well-considered conclusions that are also well supported.

Seize the day – we are proactive, seek to solve problems and adapt to deliver.

Why it matters: Our commitment to be proactive, to solve problems and adapt is what helps us to deliver positive change. From marginal improvements all the way up to transformational reform, we seize the day and take the initiative to push our work forwards.

See the whole picture – we are guided by evidence and seek to understand the broader context.

Why it matters: Our perspectives and discussions are shaped by the evidence of what works and are informed by our broader understanding of the context and system at play. This ability to see the whole picture improves our work and our influence on achieving better outcomes.

Victorian Public Sector values

Our Victorian Public Sector (VPS) values describe the behaviour that the Victorian Government and community expect of us and are codified in the Public Administration Act 2004. These values ensure we are fair, objective and courteous in all our dealings.

The VPS values are:

• Responsiveness
• Integrity
• Impartiality
• Accountability
• Respect
• Leadership
• Human Rights

Within our operating environment, there are drivers and challenges that require the department to adjust its planning, implementation and delivery of services and system reform.

The economy

While the Victorian economy has strong foundations, there are challenging economic conditions to be navigated with high inflation, rising interest rates and weakening national and global growth.

The department will actively manage the impacts of rising costs of services, products and labour as it continues to deliver its infrastructure programs and provide service delivery.

Climate change

Our recent experience with responding to natural disasters has improved our resilience and readiness to ensure continuity of learning, so that the impacts of future events can be reduced. This is being achieved by making use of our digital teaching capabilities, quickly establishing alternative arrangements when necessary and supplementing transport networks where required. 

The department, all schools and early childhood education settings have a role to play in delivering on the Victorian target of net zero emissions by 2045, for example, through improving energy efficiency, reducing energy consumption and drawing energy from renewable sources. The department will embed renewable energy career pathways into the government’s core offering of vocational education and training (VET) in schools.

Aboriginal self-determination

With the Victorian Government’s commitment to deliver all elements of the Uluru Statement from the Heart – Voice, Treaty and Truth – the coming years offer the opportunity for significant positive change, along with many potential challenges for the social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal children and young people.

The Yoorrook Justice Commission is uncovering difficult and traumatic truths about the impacts of colonisation on First Peoples in Victoria that need to be told and heard. Hearings and deliberations will continue up until June 2025 following a recent extension of the Yoorrook Justice Commission’s work. 

Later in 2023, a national referendum will be held on constitutional recognition and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament.

Victoria’s commitment to self-determination in education will continue and will work with First Nations people and communities, building on our successes to realise the ambition of Marrung: Aboriginal Education Plan 2016–2026.

Digital disruption and transformation

The release of artificial intelligence (AI) applications, such as ChatGPT, has sparked significant debate about AI’s productive potential and associated risks. Understanding how educators can best use AI in the classroom, with appropriate instruction, supervision and critical assessment of AI-generated outputs will be important in the future. 

How technology can be used within the classroom and at home is evolving quickly. Children and young people have greater access to internet-connected devices and social media. These are parts of contemporary life and present significant learning and teaching opportunities. However, they also carry potential negative consequences, such as online bullying, which can impact mental health. Appropriate protections, instruction and monitoring will help to keep children safe online.

Population change

Our state is growing quickly, with Victoria’s population expected to reach 11.2 million by 2056. The rate of overseas migration is increasing after a temporary slowdown during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is being driven by the return to the state of international students and skilled migrants. Population growth is highest in the new suburbs and developments along the urban fringe as well as in regional shires close to the city and regional centres.

Such rapid growth creates a need for additional schools, new kindergartens and early learning centres, and the expansion of existing facilities to cater for more children and young people. Identifying shifting growth patterns quickly and planning effectively for future needs will be critical to keep pace with increasing demand.

Workforce availability and capability

Victoria needs to attract, recruit and retain more teachers, educators and staff to address the significant demand within our schools and kindergarten settings. There is significant growth projected in early childhood and school education requirements for Victoria. Supporting this growth will require more highly skilled teachers to deliver quality education to children and students.

There is an additional challenge to attracting and retaining educators in rural and regional areas, in specialist schools and in Melbourne’s urban growth corridors.

There are also specific subject areas such as digital technology and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects where demand is very high.

Addressing workforce supply challenges requires departmental efforts on multiple fronts and key initiatives are already underway. Comprehensive supports have been invested in to address key areas of staff concern, including workload management, and improved career development and progression.

Information security and privacy

Information security and privacy vulnerabilities are affecting all areas of society with significant implications for organisations large and small. High-profile data breaches are occurring more frequently, and this presents critical challenges for the school and early childhood education sectors, which deal with sensitive private information.

The department must be able to effectively prevent, detect and respond to inappropriate access to and use of information and technology, as must other employers in our sectors. This requires robust security protocols and protections being in place. It also relies on capability and understanding of the responsibilities for appropriate handling of personal information and accurate and timely notifications of issues and breaches to and from affected services. 

Best Start, Best Life

The department is delivering the ‘Best Start, Best Life’ reforms that will be transformational for early childhood education in Victoria over the next decade. The package of reforms represents a significant leap forward in terms of access and equity that every Victorian child under 5 will benefit from, regardless of their geographic location or family circumstances. 

A key element of the reform is an expansion of Free Kinder programs for all 3- and 4-year-old children in participating services across Victoria, which was introduced in 2023. This includes both sessional kindergarten services and long day care kindergarten programs. A universal 30-hour a week program of play-based learning called Pre-Prep will roll out from 2025, and be fully delivered by 2032. The Three-Year-Old Kindergarten reform is well advanced, with children receiving between 5 and 15 hours per week across the state. The delivery of early childhood infrastructure by government and through grants to the sector is a key part of these reforms.

In addition, 50 Victorian government-owned and operated early learning centres are being established in areas of greatest need, making it easier for families to access high-quality, low-fee education and care services. This is a significant investment that will complement the efforts of the Australian Government – as the lead on childcare – to create a more affordable and available childcare system more broadly. 

Providing all Victorian children with access to 2 years of play-based learning before school will have profound and long-lasting impacts. Evidence shows that more and earlier teacher-led early learning through kindergarten and Pre-Prep will lead to better educational and life outcomes, especially for vulnerable and disadvantaged children. The economic benefits of the reforms are also compelling, with parents and carers better able to participate in the workforce, if they choose. 

School reform

Over the last 8 years, the department has delivered an ambitious school reform agenda. This has included intensive teaching and learning supports, and an uplift in school workforce capability development, including the establishment of the Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership. 

Generational reforms in mental health and wellbeing and disability inclusion are underway and will begin to reach maturity and become embedded over the next few years. Significant senior secondary school pathways reforms to build the aspirations and skills of young people in Victoria have commenced, so that secondary schooling sets them up for future careers and meets the needs of the modern economy. 

Future effort will build on these reforms to tackle enduring and new challenges to drive improved student outcomes. There will be a sustained focus on equity, so that all students can succeed.

There continues to be significant investment to strengthen the school system, so that schools and teachers are well equipped to support student achievement. We are providing a high-quality, contemporary learning environment through the delivery of modern infrastructure, including the building of 100 new schools, as well as significant new upgrades. 

Boosting workforce supply and quality, while retaining and supporting our existing teachers, remains a priority. This includes giving our teachers opportunities to focus on teaching activities that provide the greatest benefit to students.

Focus areas

To lift outcomes for all children and young people, we will focus on:

Focus area 1 - Expanding early learning

Providing more hours of free quality early learning for all children.

Key strategic plan initiatives

• Three-Year-Old Kindergarten: continue to roll out kindergarten programs for 3-year-olds across the state, growing to 15 hours by 2029. 
• Pre-Prep: transition 4-year-old kindergarten to ‘Pre-Prep’ over the next decade – a universal 30-hours a week program of play-based learning for every 4-year-old child in Victoria. 
• Free Kinder funding: Free Kinder funding into the Victorian system, to support participation and ease the cost-of-living for families. 
• New early learning centres: establish 50 Victorian government-owned and operated early learning centres, in areas of greatest need. 

Focus area 2 - Excellence in learning

Supporting schools and services to achieve better learning outcomes for children and young people.

Key strategic plan initiatives:

• Best kindergartens for Victorian kids: provide grants for kindergartens to procure new or improved toys and equipment, Bush Kinder programs, toy libraries and expansion of bilingual kindergartens. 
• Early years assessment and learning tool: provide teachers and co-educators with a new online observation-based tool that supports assessment of children’s strengths, interests and abilities. 
• Differentiated support for school improvement: establish teams of regionally based executive-class principals, and leading teachers partnering with schools that have challenging and complex settings to deliver improvements. 
• Lifting student literacy and numeracy outcomes: 
  • The Middle Years Literacy and Numeracy Support program provides funding for government schools to release experienced teachers to provide intensive learning support to at-risk students in Year 10.
  • The Tutor Learning Initiative provides funding for government and low-fee non-government schools to employ tutors to deliver targeted small-group learning support to students who need it most.
• New Tech Schools: create 6 new Tech Schools to provide hands-on and immersive STEM learning experiences to at least 62,000 secondary school students. 
• Lessons plans: develop high-quality sequenced lesson plans in priority curriculum areas to reduce administrative burden and ease workload pressure for teachers. 
• Senior secondary pathways reform: implement the Victorian Certificate of Education Vocational Major and the Victorian Pathways Certificate, deliver high-quality VET to all Victorian students, develop pathways for students to engage with emerging industries and improve non-academic pathways to pursue senior secondary education. 

Focus area 3 - Strengthening wellbeing engagement

Having the right support and services in place to meet the needs of each child and young person.

Key strategic plan initiatives:

• Inclusion in kinder: implement disability inclusion reforms, including more Pre-School Field Officers, continuing the specialist equipment program, strengthening current assessment processes, and designing and piloting a new strengths-based approach to support. 
• Kinder participation: improve local kinder participation through strengthened local and state-wide strategies, leverage existing initiatives such as School Readiness Funding, and create a new kindergarten attendance data system. 
• Student mental health reforms: includes establishing a Schools Mental Health Fund support by a menu of evidence-based initiatives, expanding the Mental Health in Primary Schools program, funding mental health and wellbeing leaders in every government and low-fee non-government school, and embedding mental health practitioners in every government secondary school. 
• Disability inclusion: roll out the Disability Inclusion tiered funding model and system capability-building initiatives to help schools better identify and respond to the needs of students with disability. 
• Engaging students: strengthen strategic focus on improving school attendance and student engagement, supported by targeted efforts to increase the scale and scope of the Navigator program for chronically disengaged students and continue LOOKOUT centre support for students in Out of Home Care. 
• Re-engaging early school leavers to remain in learning: enhance data infrastructure to identify and support early school leavers who are lost or disengaged from the education and training system.
• Providing students with the essentials: continue to deliver school breakfast clubs, affordable school uniforms, glasses for kids and free period products to improve opportunities for students who need extra support. 

Focus area 4 - Supporting Aboriginal self-determination strengthening cultural safety

Improving learning and wellbeing outcomes for Aboriginal children and young people and supporting community control and choice.

Key strategic plan initiatives:

• Cultural safety and participation in kinder: work with Victorian Aboriginal Education Association (VAEAI) on new approaches to establishing a culturally safe environment in all services, which values and respects Aboriginal culture, children and families. 
• Pre-Prep: roll out Pre-Prep to Aboriginal children as a priority – Aboriginal children across the state will be eligible for between 16 and 30 hours per week by 2026. 
• Marrung – Aboriginal education plan 2016–26: close the gap in educational outcomes between Koorie and non-Koorie Victorians that covers literacy and numeracy programs as well as Koorie staff development and additional positions. 
• Dhelk Wukang – Aboriginal Inclusion Plan: strengthen Aboriginal inclusion, self-determination and cultural safety at all levels within the department, including the Victorian Public Service and Government Teaching Service. 
• Self-determination in education reforms: enact change in schools to strengthen self-determination for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners.
• First Peoples workforce: attract and retain new and returning First Peoples to the schools workforce and continue to work with VAEAI on supporting First Peoples to become early childhood teachers and educators. 

Focus area 5 - Addressing disadvantage vulnerability

Enabling children and young people experiencing disadvantage and vulnerability to get the full benefits of education.

Key strategic plan initiatives: 

• Fighting for students with disability and their families: provide more support for students with disability and their families, ensuring more students have better access to the services they need. 
• Pre-Prep: roll out Pre-Prep to vulnerable and disadvantaged children – under the staged roll-out, 16–30 hours of Pre-Prep will be provided to vulnerable children in 2026, to disadvantaged children in 2028. 
• Multicultural, multifaith and culturally and linguistically diverse communities (CALD) support: support multicultural and multifaith communities by strengthening and extending language provision and expanding refugee education support programs. 

Focus area 6 - Strengthening our teaching education workforce

Growing and supporting our education and care workforces, and supporting best practices in teaching.

Key strategic plan initiatives:

• Career Start – Transforming the first years of the teaching profession (schools): improve the experience of graduate teachers as they enter the profession, including time-release, professional development opportunities and a range of additional supports. 
• Primary mathematics and science specialists, secondary science technologies and mathematics: support existing teachers to train in areas of subject demand such as mathematics, science and technologies, as well as attract new teachers in these core subject areas. 
• Improving teaching quality (schools): reduce maximum face-to-face contact hours. 
• Targeted initiatives to attract more teachers (schools): support the growing demand for teachers by delivering programs to lift the number of graduates and career changers entering the teaching profession. 
• Excellence in teacher education reforms (schools): improve the quality of initial teacher education, improve support and development for teachers early in their careers, and raise the status of the teaching profession. 
• Kindergarten workforce strategy: deliver Three-Year-Old Kindergarten and Pre-Prep, work with our partners to build on the existing kindergarten workforce strategy – with a focus on attracting and retaining kindergarten teachers and educators, and supporting high-quality early childhood education. 

Foundations

To be successful, our priorities will be:

Foundation area 1 - Our people

Supporting a strong, inclusive and high-performing culture.

Key strategic plan initiatives

• Victorian public service people strategy 2021–24: focus on 4 key areas: connected culture, purposeful leadership, enabled and capable and inclusive organisation. 
• Gender equality action plan 2022–25: address gendered structural and cultural inequalities and ensure a gender-equitable, safe, inclusive and respectful workplace for all staff. 
• Safe and well in education 2019–24: build stronger mental health and wellbeing by creating a shared culture of responsibility and support through guidance and access to assistance when needed. 

Key activities

• Develop a departmental diversity plan. 
• Implement next enterprise bargaining agreement for school workforces and establish workforce arrangements for the 50 new government-owned and operated early learning centres. 
• Continue to support principal health and wellbeing.

Foundation area 2 - Strong systems

Ensuring we have the right systems and business processes in place.

Key strategic plan initiatives

• Cyber security and Information and Communications Technology  (Securing Connected Learners): create a safe and secure system-wide digital learning environment for students and schools to achieve a globally engaged and competitive education system. 
• Child Link: continue to roll out a digital register that integrates key information to support individual children’s wellbeing and safety (birth – 18 years old). 
• Kindergarten information systems: establish updated kindergarten information systems for monitoring kindergarten funding applications, data collection (including enrolment and attendance) and reporting. 

Key activities

• Strengthen and streamline our early childhood regulatory approaches. 

Foundation area 3 - Partnerships engagement

Building strong and effective partnerships across and with our sectors, families and carers.

Key activities

• Partner with Catholic Education Commission of Victoria (CECV) and Independent Schools Victoria (ISV) to deliver the Teaching Excellence Program at the Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership. 
• Partner with parents, professionals, providers, Victorian Student Representative Council and peak bodies to design and implement reform in the early childhood and school education sectors. 
• Continue working closely with local and federal governments on maximising our collaborative impact. 
• Continue working closely with the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions to improve access to VET Delivered to School Students as part of the senior secondary pathways reform 

Foundation area 4 - Physical infrastructure

Building and partnering to create and maintain contemporary, safe and sustainable spaces.

Key strategic plan initiatives

• Department of Education asset strategy: develop and maintain a high-performing asset base by targeting investment and improving processes so assets meet demand, are safe and in good condition, are fit-for-purpose and inclusive, environmentally sustainable, and asset managers are accountable and capable across the early childhood and school education systems. 
• School infrastructure program: deliver infrastructure to meet demand, including new school construction and associated establishment processes, land acquisition, additional permanent infrastructure at existing schools and relocatable buildings, with the aim of 100 schools built by 2026. 
• Early childhood infrastructure: grants and direct delivery to support expansion of places through kindergarten building projects that support the rollout of Three-Year-Old Kindergarten and Pre-Prep. Building Blocks grants program is also making kinder buildings, playgrounds and equipment more inclusive for children of all abilities. 

Key activities

• Update Kindergarten Infrastructure and Service Plans with all local governments. 
• Partner with local government, non-government schools and not-for-profit providers to deliver new early childhood infrastructure. 
• Identify school sites for delivery of Kindergartens on School Sites.
• Undertake analysis to determine where and when new schools should be built and additional capacity required at established schools.

Foundation area 5 - Stewardship

Actively ensuring our sectors deliver outcomes through our state-run schools and services by providing support, guidance, oversight and assurance across education and early childhood sectors.

Key activities

• Support Best Start, Best Life provision, planning and change management at the sector and local level.
• Strengthen child information sharing and improve service connections in the early years, working with other departments, local governments and partners. 
• Review school planning and review processes to align with revised Framework for Improving Student Outcomes (FISO 2.0). 

Foundation area 6 - Resilience, mitigation adaptation to climate change

Doing our bit to address climate change and ensuring continuity of learning in the event of natural disasters and emergency events.

Key strategic plan initiatives

• Education and training climate adaptation action plan 2022–26: build understanding of and guide how to adapt and build resilience to the impacts of climate change.
• Greener Government School Buildings Program: install solar power systems in schools to lower costs of electricity and reduce schools’ carbon footprint. 

Key activities

• Work with cross-government agencies to enable and support response to and recovery from natural emergency events. 

How we measure our success

The department uses a set of objective indicators and performance measures to evaluate outcomes and assess how well we are meeting our objectives and delivering our outputs. Through monitoring and measuring our performance, we are better able to understand and demonstrate the impact we are having on the educational outcomes in the Victorian community. The full set of the department’s objective indicators and performance measures are published in the 2023–24 Victorian State Budget Paper 3.¹

The department reports progress against the objective indicators and performance measures in the Annual Report, available on the department’s website.² The Annual Report also provides a summary of the progress in implementing the key initiatives outlined in this strategic plan.

Output costs

The 2023–24 Victorian State Budget Paper 3 sets out the department’s outputs and funding. For the 2023–24 financial year, the department’s output budget totals $15.6 billion. 

Operating performance

The department is expected to report an operating surplus of $537 million in 2023–24, compared with an expected operating surplus in 2022–23 of $631 million for the revised budget.

Balance sheet

The department’s net assets position is estimated to increase by $2.5 billion in 2023–24, compared with the 2022–23 revised budget, reflecting an increase in total assets of $2.6 billion.

Investing and finance

The department is anticipating an increase of $199 million in its net cash position in 2023–24, compared with the 2022–23 revised budget.

Asset outlook and investment

The department manages a significant and growing asset portfolio to deliver effective education services for Victorians. The asset portfolio includes schools’ property, plant and equipment.

The department’s total assets are estimated to increase to $45 billion by 30 June 2024. More than $2.5 billion has been committed in 2023–24 for new and existing capital projects and $3.9 billion remaining expenditure committed for future capital works. Further financial detail on the department’s asset program is available in the 2023–24 State Budget Paper 4: State Capital Program.