The AEU believes public schools are chronically under-resourced. Photo: Ian Bushnell.
Education Minister Yvette Berry has confirmed she will establish an independent review of school resourcing in the wake of revelations that 84 per cent of ACT public schools are over budget or will be by the end of the year.
Ms Berry said the ACT Public School System Resourcing Review and its Advisory Panel would provide independent advice on the allocation of resources within the system, including the needs of individual schools and supports that can be provided centrally.
The review would also consider improvements to budget management systems and processes.
Ms Berry has written to stakeholders – including the Australian Education Union, Community and Public Sector Union, United Workers Union, ACT Principals Association, and ACT Parents – seeking feedback on the proposal, which will inform the Terms of Reference.
The AEU had called for an independent review in response to the budget crisis, something it had been warning the government about since 2021.
It wrote to Ms Berry last week, telling her the current crisis represented a chronic under-resourcing of schools rather than budget management failures.
“The current financial crisis, requiring $5.4 million in immediate savings and $25.4 million over four years, demonstrates that schools have been forced to exceed their inadequate allocations simply to maintain basic educational provision,” the union said.
In the meantime, the Education Directorate will be working with ACT public schools to develop budget management plans.
“The context, staffing profile and needs of each public school are different so there is no one-size-fits-all approach to this,” Ms Berry said.
“There will be workshops with ACT public school principals later this week, and meetings with school principals on budget management will follow.”
Reports persist that principals have been told different ways to cut costs such as cancelling casual contracts, leaving positions vacant, and axing excursions.
AEU ACT president Angela Burroughs said it was still unclear what principals had or hadn’t been told.
“We are concerned that this will continue to be the case until the Education Directorate issues clear, written advice on the expectations of schools in response to the current budget situation,” she said.
In a reply to the union, Ms Berry acknowledged that members were confused about expectations of them in the short-term and she had asked the Education Directorate to provide clarity to school leaders as a priority.
Ms Berry told Region that the Education Directorate had given union representatives the same information provided to principals on 21 July.
“The Education Directorate will work to address any confusion and misunderstanding on these matters as part of their ongoing commitment to work in partnership with principals to provide quality education services,” she said.
“This includes budget management efforts that make best use of public resources.”
Ms Berry said details of the inquiry and Terms of Reference would be released when settled.
The Advisory Panel will be informed by a stakeholder reference group comprising unions, Parents ACT, ACT Principals Association, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body and other directorates, in particular Chief Minister, Treasury and Economic Development Directorate.
A panel is expected to report to the Minister by 27 February 2026.
Opposition Leader Leanne Castley said the review was the biggest buck pass of all time.
“This is not overspending by the schools – it is underfunding from the government,” she said.
“We have heard of schools being told to cancel excursions, combine classes and not to replace staff – these are all core services that lie squarely with the government.
“For the Minister to claim she needs an ‘independent review’ within a month of the budget being handed down is unbelievable. To force schools to find $5 million in savings this year, and $25 million in the next four, is unforgivable.”
Ms Castley said the ACT Budget had not even been passed yet the funding is in tatters, schools are in confusion, and stakeholders rightly outraged.
“We call on the Minister to stop passing the buck, to take responsibility and to fix the mess their mismanagement has created,” she said.
