Part 1 Preliminary
1.1 Name of Regulations [see Note 1]
These Regulations are the Schools Assistance Regulations 2009.
1.2 Commencement
These Regulations are taken to have commenced on 1 January 2009.
1.3 Application
(1) Parts 1 and 7 of these Regulations are taken to have applied on and after 1 January 2009.
(2) The remainder of these Regulations apply on and after the day after these Regulations are registered.
Note These Regulations give effect to data collection and reporting requirements in the National Education Agreement. The ACARA Measurement Framework for Schooling in Australia, as amended from time to time, sets out the key performance measures and the agreed assessment and data collection cycle that apply equally to government and non‑government schools.
1.4 Definitions
In these Regulations:
ACARA means the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority established by section 5 of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority Act 2008.
Act means the Schools Assistance Act 2008.
Catholic schools means Catholic systemic schools and Catholic non‑systemic schools.
COAG means the Council of Australian Governments.
ICILS means the International Computer and Information Literacy study, which is an international assessment of students in year 8 in computer and information literacy conducted by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement.
ICT means Information and Communications Technology.
language conventions means spelling, grammar and punctuation.
Ministerial Council means the Council of Commonwealth, State and Territory Ministers, as it exists from time to time, with responsibility for school education.
Note The current Ministerial Council is the Standing Council on School Education and Early Childhood, which was established on 18 January 2012, and took over the schools education functions of the former Ministerial Council for Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs (MCEECDYA). MCEECDYA was established on 1 July 2009 and took over the schools education functions of the former Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs.
NAP means the National Assessment Program.
Note The NAP comprises the agreed assessments identified on the NAP web page and in the document titled Measurement Framework for Schooling in Australia, both of which are available on the Internet at http://www.acara.edu.au.
NAPLAN means the National Assessment Program — Literacy and Numeracy.
PIRLS means the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study.
Note PIRLS is an international assessment of students in year 4 in reading literacy conducted every 5 years by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement.
PISA means the Programme for International Student Assessment.
Note PISA is an international assessment of 15 year old students in reading literacy, mathematical literacy and scientific literacy. It is conducted every 3 years by the Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development.
TIMSS means the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study.
Note TIMSS is an international assessment of students in Years 4 and 8 in mathematics and science. It is conducted every 4 years by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement.
Part 2 Funding agreements — national student assessments
2.1 National student assessments
(1) For section 17 of the Act, the following national student assessments (as developed by ACARA and mentioned in the Measurement Framework for Schooling in Australia, published by ACARA) are prescribed:
(a) for all students in years 3, 5, 7 and 9 in all schools—the assessments for the student’s year mentioned in table 1; and
(b) for students selected in a sample, in a school selected in the sample—the assessments mentioned in table 2.
Note The Measurement Framework for Schooling in Australia defines the national key performance measures, specifies the data sources for these measures and outlines the reporting cycle for 2010 to 2015, and is available on the Internet at http://www.acara.edu.au.
(2) Each assessment is prescribed for the years specified in the table for that assessment.
Table 1
| Item | Assessment | Years |
| 1 | NAPLAN assessment in reading, writing and language conventions | 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 |
| 2 | NAPLAN assessment in numeracy | 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 |
Table 2
| Item | Assessment | Year(s) |
| 1 | PISA reading literacy assessment | 2009, 2012 |
| 2 | PISA mathematical literacy assessment | 2009, 2012 |
| 3 | TIMSS mathematics assessment, year 4 | 2010 |
| 4 | TIMSS mathematics assessment, year 8 | 2010 |
| 5 | NAP science literacy assessment, year 6 | 2009, 2012 |
| 6 | PISA scientific literacy assessment | 2009, 2012 |
| 7 | TIMSS science assessment, year 4 | 2010 |
| 8 | TIMSS science assessment, year 8 | 2010 |
| 9 | NAP civics and citizenship assessment, year 6 | 2010, 2013 |
| 10 | NAP civics and citizenship assessment, year 10 | 2010, 2013 |
| 11 | NAP ICT literacy assessment, year 6 | 2011 |
| 12 | NAP ICT literacy assessment, year 10 | 2011 |
| 13 | PIRLS assessment | 2010 |
| 14 | ICILS assessment, year 8 | 2013 |
Part 3 Funding agreements — national reports on the outcomes of schooling
3.1 Performance information
For paragraph 18 (1) (c) of the Act, the performance information specified in Schedule 1 is prescribed.
3.2 Performance information — student characteristics
(1) For paragraph 18 (1) (c) of the Act, performance information for the performance measures mentioned in items 101, 201, 301, 401, 402, 403, 404, 501 and 502 of Schedule 1 must be in a form that enables the publication of the information for the relevant program year disaggregated by the following characteristics of students:
(a) sex;
(b) Indigenous status;
(c) socio‑economic background;
(d) language background;
(e) geographic location;
(f) disability.
Note It is expected that the definition of disability for paragraph (f) will be prescribed at a later date.
(2) In subregulation (1):
(a) the characteristics of sex, Indigenous status, socio‑economic background and language background are as described in the revised 2010 Data Standards Manual—Student Background Characteristics, published by the Ministerial Council, as in force in December 2010; and
(b) the characteristic of geographic location is as approved by the Ministerial Council at its meeting in July 2001.
Note The revised 2010 Data Standards Manual — Student Background Characteristics is available on the Internet at http://www.mceecdya.edu.au.
3.3 Performance information — measures for student attendance
(1) For paragraph 18 (1) (c) of the Act, performance information for the performance measure mentioned in Division 1 of Part 7 of Schedule 1 must be in a form that enables the publication of the information for the relevant program year disaggregated by the following characteristics of students:
(a) school sector;
(b) school grade;
(c) sex;
(d) Indigenous status.
(2) For subregulation (1), each of the following is a school sector:
(a) Catholic schools;
(b) other non‑government schools.
(3) For subregulation (1), each of the following is a school grade:
(a) all ungraded primary school students;
(b) all ungraded secondary school students;
(c) each of years 1 to 10.
(4) For subregulation (1), the characteristics of sex and Indigenous status are as described in the revised 2010 Data Standards Manual—Student Background Characteristics, published by the Ministerial Council, as in force in December 2010.
Note The revised 2010 Data Standards Manual — Student Background Characteristics is available on the Internet at http://www.mceecdya.edu.au.
3.4 Reporting periods
The Minister may, in writing, determine a period to which a report that includes performance information mentioned in Schedule 1 must relate.
Part 4 Funding agreements — individual school information
4.1 Specified individual school information
For subsection 19 (1) of the Act, the information in this Part for an individual school is specified.
4.2 Contextual information
(1) The information is the following information about the individual school:
(a) the school information statement;
(b) whether the school belongs to the Catholic school sector or the independent school sector;
(c) the school grades offered by the school;
(d) the street address of the school;
(e) total number of students enrolled at the school;
(f) total full-time equivalent student enrolments at the school;
(g) total student enrolments at the school disaggregated by sex;
(h) total student enrolments at the school disaggregated by school grade;
(i) the de-identified residential address of each student enrolled at the school;
(j) the number of Indigenous students enrolled at the school;
(k) the number of students of a language background other than English enrolled at the school;
(l) the number of students with a disability enrolled at the school.
(2) For paragraph (1) (a), a school information statement is a short statement about the school that may include information about any of the following matters:
(a) the school’s mission;
(b) the school’s values;
(c) the school’s focus;
(d) achievements;
(e) specialist programs;
(f) student welfare programs;
(g) curriculum strengths and extra curricular activities;
(h) contextual information about the school’s affiliations and philosophy;
(i) the address of the website for the school or school system.
4.3 Capacity information
(1) The school income broken down by income type.
(2) The following information about the teaching and non-teaching staff at the school:
(a) the number of teaching staff;
(b) the number of full-time equivalent teaching staff;
(c) the number of non-teaching staff;
(d) the number of full-time equivalent non-teaching staff;
(e) the number of teaching staff by level of expertise.
4.4 Outcomes information
(1) The rate of student attendance at the school disaggregated by school grade, sex, and Indigenous status.
Note Performance information for student attendance is prescribed, for section 18 of the Act, in Part 3 of these Regulations.
(2) NAPLAN outcomes.
(3) The following information about secondary school outcomes for each student enrolled at the school:
(a) the number of students participating in vocational education and training;
(b) the number of course enrolments and qualifications completed for students undertaking vocational education and training by qualification level and, if available, industry area;
(ba) the number of students undertaking school-based apprenticeships and traineeships;
(c) the number of students attaining year 12 or equivalent qualifications;
(d) the number of students attaining qualifications, at the end of their schooling, other than year 12 or equivalent;
(e) tertiary entrance results;
(f) the destination of each student enrolled at the school after the end of the student’s secondary education.
(3A) Information about the satisfaction with the school of students, parents and teachers.
(4) For subregulation (2), NAPLAN outcomes means:
(a) de-identified individual student results from the NAPLAN assessments from 2008 onwards in reading, writing, language conventions and numeracy at each of years 3, 5, 7 and 9; and
(b) for each NAPLAN assessment, the number of students:
(i) exempted from the assessment; and
(ii) absent from the assessment; and
(iii) withdrawn from the assessment.
Note NAPLAN assessments are prescribed, for section 17 of the Act, in Part 2 of these Regulations.
Part 5 Funding agreements — reporting to parents etc.
5.1 Student reports
(1) For paragraphs 20 (3) (d) and (e) of the Act, and subject to subregulation (2), a report of a student’s achievement must include, for subjects studied, an assessment against achievement levels defined by the education authority or school, being levels:
(a) labelled as A, B, C, D or E (or on an equivalent 5 point scale); and
(b) clearly defined against specific learning standards.
(2) The Minister may approve a different form of student report for this regulation.
(3) The report must be provided at least twice in a program year.
Note A relevant authority or school may have obligations under the Privacy Act 1988 in providing information.
Part 6 Funding agreements — publication by schools of information relating to schools
6.1 Information relating to schools
(1) For subsection 21 (1) of the Act, and subject to subregulation (2), the following information for a school is specified:
(a) contextual information about the school, including the characteristics of the student body;
(b) teacher standards and qualifications (as mandated in the relevant jurisdiction);
(c) workforce composition, including Indigenous composition;
(d) student attendance at school, including:
(i) the rates of attendance for the whole school and for each year level; and
(ii) a description of how non‑attendance is managed by the school;
(e) senior secondary outcomes, including the percentage of year 12 students:
(i) undertaking vocational training or training in a trade; and
(ii) attaining a year 12 certificate or equivalent vocational education and training qualification;
(f) student outcomes in standardised national literacy and numeracy testing;
(g) parent, student and teacher satisfaction with the school;
(h) post‑school destinations;
(i) school income broken down by funding source.
Note 1 Under subsection 21 (1) of the Act, the information must relate to the school for a program year.
Note 2 Subsection 24 (1A) of the Act provides that a funding agreement must not require a report to include any information that would identify a particular donor as a funding source of any non‑government school or non‑government body.
(2) The Minister may approve a different form of information for this regulation.
(3) The information mentioned in subregulations (1) and (2) is the minimum information required, and this regulation does not prevent a school from making other information available.
(4) For subsection 21 (2) of the Act, a school must:
(a) make the information publicly available on the Internet; and
(b) make arrangements to provide the information, on request, to a person who is responsible for a student and is unable to access the Internet.
Note A relevant authority or school may have obligations under the Privacy Act 1988 in providing information.
Part 6A Funding agreements—national curriculum
6A.1 National curriculum
(1) For subsection 22 (1) of the Act, the following are prescribed as the national curriculum:
(a) the Australian Curriculum authorised by the Ministerial Council from time to time;
(b) an alternative curriculum framework assessed by ACARA as allowing comparable outcomes to the Australian Curriculum included on ACARA’s Recognition Register.
(2) The national curriculum must be implemented by the later of:
(a) the date it is implemented in government schools in the same jurisdiction; or
(b) the date authorised by the Ministerial Council.
Part 7 Grants for recurrent expenditure
7.1 Average Government School Recurrent Costs — meaning of AGSRC
For subsection 36 (2) of the Act, the table sets out amounts for program years and types of education.
| Item | Program year | Primary education ($) | Secondary education ($) |
| 1 | 2009 | 8 380 | 10 646 |
| 2 | 2010 | 9 070 | 11 393 |
| 3 | 2011 | 9 697 | 11 945 |
| 4 | 2012 | 10 057 | 12 445 |
7.2 Indigenous supplementary assistance — primary education funding amounts
For subsection 67 (3) of the Act, the table sets out assistance amounts per student for program years and types of primary school campus.
| Item | Program year | Non-remote school campus ($) | Remote and very remote school campus ($) |
| 1 | 2009 | 1 668 | 4 012 |
| 2 | 2010 | 1 805 | 4 342 |
| 3 | 2011 | 1 930 | 4 643 |
| 4 | 2012 | 2 002 | 4 816 |
7.2A Indigenous supplementary assistance additional amount — primary education at non-remote school campus that is a boarding school
For subsection 67 (1A) of the Act, the table sets out an additional amount of assistance in relation to an Indigenous student who is:
(a) from a remote area or a very remote area; and
(b) receiving primary education as a boarding student at a non-remote campus of a boarding school that has more than 50 Indigenous boarding students from remote or very remote areas on the schools census day in the program year.
| Item | Program year | Student from remote area ($) | Student from very remote area ($) |
| 1 | 2011 | 2 713 | 2 713 |
| 2 | 2012 | 2 814 | 2 814 |
Note 1 The Indigenous boarding students mentioned in paragraph (b) may be receiving primary or secondary education at the boarding school.
Note 2 Remote areas and very remote areas are identified in the Remoteness Structure, which is defined in section 4 of the Act.
7.3 Indigenous supplementary assistance — secondary education funding amounts
For subsection 69 (3) of the Act, the table sets out assistance amounts per student for program years and types of secondary school campus.
| Item | Program year | Non-remote school campus ($) | Remote and very remote school campus ($) |
| 1 | 2009 | 2 381 | 4 656 |
| 2 | 2010 | 2 548 | 4 983 |
| 3 | 2011 | 2 672 | 5 224 |
| 4 | 2012 | 2 784 | 5 443 |
7.3A Indigenous supplementary assistance additional amount — secondary education at non-remote school campus that is a boarding school
For subsection 69 (1A) of the Act, the table sets out an additional amount of assistance in relation to an Indigenous student who is:
(a) from a remote area or a very remote area; and
(b) receiving secondary education as a boarding student at a non-remote campus of a boarding school that has more than 50 Indigenous boarding students from remote or very remote areas on the schools census day in the program year.
| Item | Program year | Student from remote area ($) | Student from very remote area ($) |
| 1 | 2011 | 2 552 | 2 552 |
| 2 | 2012 | 2 659 | 2 659 |
Note 1 The Indigenous boarding students mentioned in paragraph (b) may be receiving primary or secondary education at the boarding school.
Note 2 Remote areas and very remote areas are identified in the Remoteness Structure, which is defined in section 4 of the Act.
Part 8 Grants for capital expenditure
8.1 Base assistance amount and capital expenditure supplementation number
(1) For subsection 84 (3) of the Act, the table sets out the base assistance amount for program years.
| Item | Program year | Assistance amount ($) |
| 1 | 2011 | 128 712 000 |
| 2 | 2012 | 131 814 000 |
(2) For subsection 85 (2) of the Act, the table sets out the capital expenditure supplementation number for program years.
| Item | Program year | Capital expenditure supplementation number |
| 1 | 2009 | 1.051 |
| 2 | 2010 | 0.997 |
| 3 | 2011 | 1.0241 |
| 4 | 2012 | 1.01527 |
(3) For paragraphs 85 (4) (a) and (b) of the Act, the index of building prices and the index of wage costs is the composite index of building prices and wage costs in Index Number 3020 Non-residential Building Construction Australia, published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in Table 15 of the Time Series Spreadsheets in the Producer Price Indexes, Australia (Catalogue No. 6427.0), as it exists from time to time.
Part 9 Grants for targeted expenditure
9.1A Education in country areas
For subsection 88 (3) of the Act, the base assistance amount for the 2013 program year is $6 479 000.
9.1 Literacy, numeracy and special learning needs—school grants amounts
For subsection 98 (2) of the Act, the table sets out the base assistance amounts for program years.
| Item | Program year | Assistance amount ($) |
| 1 | 2009 | 146 258 955 |
| 2 | 2013 | 175 287 827 |
9.2 Literacy, numeracy and special learning needs — guarantee amounts
For paragraph 99 (b) of the Act, the table sets out guarantee amounts for program years.
| Item | Program year | Guarantee amount ($) |
| 1 | 2009 | 1 867 513 |
| 2 | 2010 | 1 327 627 |
| 3 | 2011 | 834 785 |
| 4 | 2012 | 382 000 |
9.3 Targeted expenditure supplementation number
For subsection 101 (2) of the Act, the table sets out targeted expenditure supplementation numbers for program years.
| Item | Program year | Number |
| 1 | 2009 | 1.047 |
| 2 | 2010 | 1.109 |
| 3 | 2011 | 1.0017 |
| 4 | 2012 | 1.029 |
Schedule 1 Performance information
(regulation 3.1)
Part 1 Measures for English literacy
101 The percentage of students in each of years 3, 5, 7 and 9 at each level of proficiency in the NAPLAN assessment in each of reading, writing and language conventions, including specific reference to the national minimum standards.
101A The NAPLAN mean scale scores for reading and writing.
102 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Level 3) in the PISA reading literacy assessment for 2012.
Part 2 Measures for numeracy and mathematics
201 The percentage of students in each of years 3, 5, 7 and 9 at each level of proficiency in the NAPLAN assessment in numeracy, including specific reference to the national minimum standards.
201A The NAPLAN mean scale scores for numeracy.
202 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Level 3) in the PISA mathematical literacy assessment for 2012.
203 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Intermediate) in the TIMSS mathematics assessment, year 4, for 2010.
204 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Intermediate) in the TIMSS mathematics assessment, year 8, for 2010.
Part 3 Measures for science
301 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Level 3.2) in the NAP science literacy assessment, year 6, for 2012.
302 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Level 3) in the PISA scientific literacy assessment for 2012.
303 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Intermediate) in the TIMSS science assessment, year 4, for 2010.
304 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Intermediate) in the TIMSS science assessment, year 8, for 2010.
Part 4 Measures for Civics and Citizenship
401 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Level 2) in civics and citizenship in the NAP civics and citizenship assessment, year 6, for 2013.
402 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Level 3) in civics and citizenship in the NAP civics and citizenship assessment, year 10, for 2013.
Part 5 Measures for ICT literacy
501 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Level 3) in the NAP ICT literacy assessment, year 6, for 2011.
502 The percentage of students achieving at or above the proficient standard (Level 4) in the NAP ICT literacy assessment, year 10, for 2011.
Part 6 Measures for vocational education and training in schools
601 The proportion of the population aged 15 to 19 years who in the program year successfully completed at least one unit of competency as part of a vocational education and training qualification at Australian Qualification Framework Certificate II or above.
Part 7 Measures for student participation
Division 1 Information
701 The number of actual full-time equivalent student days attended by full-time students in years 1 to 10 as a percentage of the total number of possible student days attended over the period.
701A The proportion of children aged 6 to 15 years who are enrolled in school.
701B The apparent retention rates from year 7 or 8 to year 10 and year 12.
701C The proportion of students participating in NAPLAN for years 3, 5, 7 and 9 for reading, writing and numeracy.
Division 2 Definitions
702 In item 701:
actual student days means the total number of school days attended by students.
possible student days means the total number of school days that could be attended by students.
student means a full‑time student who:
(a) is:
(i) an ungraded primary school student; or
(ii) an ungraded secondary school student; or
(iii) in any of years 1 to 10; and
(b) is enrolled for the entire duration of the period to which a report relates.
Note Under regulation 3.4, the Minister may determine the period to which the information must relate.