Speaker: Charles Tyres
My name is Charles Tyers.
I am one of the managers of independent schools in the VRQA. Speaking on behalf of Kelly Jarvis, who’s an apology, who’s the Deputy CEO of Schools.
Myself and a couple of colleagues from the VRQA, as well as some special guests from the department, ISV and the VCAA will be speaking with you today about what's involved in registering an independent school in Victoria.
We're presenting here today from the lands of the Wurundjeri people. So, I pay my respects to Traditional Owners and anyone here today.
So, a brief outline of the content we'll cover today.
So, establishing an independent school is no simple task. So, we have provided a breakdown of all the key areas that would be involved. So, it is not limited to these but (is) an overview of the guidelines. The minimum standards allow you to talk about the authorisation process for curriculum.
We'll hear from, our principal lawyers in the VRQA about governance and not-for-profit requirements.
Some more details around minimum standards and Child Safety Standards in particular.
Also, from the department around funding state grant obligations, the role of Independent Schools Victoria and the funding that they can provide some guidance on.
And then finally some details about the application process.
And a bit about the VRQA. So, the VRQA is an independent statutory authority.
We’re established under the Education Act, and we are reporting through to the Minister for Education, as well as the Minister for Skills on TAFE matters. Under the act, we have responsibility in terms of setting up a school.
The minimum standards provide the foundation for quality schools. So, the outline there, in terms of the main areas to establish is for good governance, strong financial management.
And we'll provide some further details on that separately. Effective curriculum, which we'll hear (about) from the VCAA today.
Sound teaching practices and safe environments for children.
Just to give you a bit of a sense for the number of new schools that have been established over the last few years.
So, the bar chart there indicates a breakdown of government schools, Catholic schools, and independent schools.
So, in the last year, we established 7 independent schools and registered 7 independent schools.
And in terms of the numbers, you can see it's not a high number of independent schools that come through.
So, you're here today. You've either had a longstanding interest or exploring the possibility.
You'll hear a little bit later about the time and the details of what's involved in an application.
So, it's perhaps an indication that it's not a small undertaking to establish an independent school. But we'll hear a little bit more and look forward to working with you moving forward.
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