Explore our plan
- Save Our Public Schools: fully funded public schooling
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Every child deserves a high-quality, free public education - it’s what strong societies are built on.
The major parties have abandoned our public schools for decades, giving special deals to elite non-government schools and leaving public schools to scrape by.
Currently, 98.7% of public schools receive less than 100% of the minimum Schooling Resource Standard funding – meaning around 2.5 million kids attend a school each year that is understaffed and under-resourced.
The Greens are working to end decades of underfunding by Labor and Liberal governments and provide every public school with 100% of its minimum funding needs.
The Greens' plan:
- Fully fund all public schools to 100% of the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS) by committing $6.8 billion over the next four years. This includes increasing the Commonwealth share to 25% of the SRS for public schools and 40% for public schools in the Northern Territory.
- Ensure sustainable funding by indexing public school funding to the higher of the Wage Price Index, Consumer Price Index, or SRS indexation factor.
- Close loopholes that disadvantage public schools by removing the Morrison-era provision allowing states and territories to deduct 4% of non-school costs from their SRS funding contribution. This will restore $5 billion to the system over forward estimates.
- Public School Infrastructure Our Kids Deserve
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Elite private schools use millions in federal funding to build extravagant facilities like swimming pools and castles, while public schools are left with crumbling classrooms and ageing infrastructure.
With federal capital funding for public schools scrapped in 2017, parents and communities are forced to fundraise for basic upkeep.
The Greens will invest in public schools to fund modern, world-class facilities for all students.
The Greens' plan:
- Establish a new capital grants fund for public schools to invest in capital works.
- The fund will disperse $1.25 billion in its first year and $350 million each following year, indexed in line with current capital funding indexation practices.
- Safe Classrooms
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As any teacher, parent, or carer knows, it is all too easy for teachers and students to pick up illnesses in the classroom where ventilation and social distancing are not commonplace. This was particularly the case during the COVID-19 pandemic but also applies to other airborne diseases - or smoke during bushfire season.
We must make sure that school is a safe and inclusive place for all students. In line with expert advice, this means making classrooms safe and reducing the risks of airborne hazards, including COVID-19.
By increasing ventilation and air filtration, we can make classrooms safer for everyone.
The Greens' plan:
- Fund all schools in Australia to purchase and install an air ventilation system, high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter, and a carbon dioxide monitor in each classroom and indoor communal space, such as libraries or break rooms.
- National Inclusive Education Plan
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Disabled people are consistently excluded from mainstream education facilities. This has exacerbated the segregation of the disability community. Currently, inclusivity in schools is managed on an ad hoc and individual basis. There is a need to pursue an overarching plan, steered by disabled people to ensure mainstream education is inclusive.
The Greens are committed to transitioning away from segregated education and have worked hard to address the segregation disabled people experience in education, including acknowledging the lack of inclusion through the Senate Inquiry into School Refusal.
The Greens' plan:
- Develop a National Inclusive Education Transition Plan by investing $10 million over four years in a co-design process involving disabled people, families, teachers, unions, and education experts.
More information on this policy initiative will be released soon.