Welcome to The Educational Facilities Standards and Guidelines (EFSG). This website and suite of documents defines the standards and requirements associated with designing and delivering new school facilities or the upgrades of existing educational facilities.
The EFSG ensures that every school project meets the necessary standards to support great teaching and learning for students and teachers wherever they are located across the state.
The Infrastructure Standards are your guide to understanding how NSW public schools are planned, designed, and built. We've made it simple: explore the standards through three clear landing pages—Past, Current and Future.
Each section helps you navigate key requirements, from legacy guidelines to current standards in use, and future directions under development. Set by the NSW Department of Education, these standards form a robust and evolving framework that supports high-quality, consistent, and forward-thinking school infrastructure across the state.
While the most current version of the EFSG is generally the authoritative reference, the applicable version for any given project may be determined by the date on which the project's business case was approved. It is the responsibility of project teams to confirm the relevant version with School Infrastructure (SI) and seek clarification where uncertainty exists.
The EFSG adopts a ‘live learning’ model, and updates may be issued through future version-controlled releases to reflect evolving priorities, sector feedback, and lessons learned.
SI accepts no liability for any loss, damage, or claim arising from the misapplication, outdated referencing, or misinterpretation of EFSG content. Users must ensure they are working from the correct version and confirm any ambiguities directly with SI.
All versions of the EFSG are used for contractual purposes in the design and delivery of new and upgraded school facilities. The following is a list of which version would apply to the school project in question.
The Educational Facilities Standards and Guidelines (EFSG) form part of the contractual requirements for the design and delivery of school infrastructure projects commissioned by School Infrastructure (SI). Adherence to the EFSG is mandatory and constitutes a legal obligation for all engaged parties.
The EFSG sets out the design intent, spatial and functional requirements, and standardised design components necessary to guide the consistent, equitable, and high-quality development of educational facilities across NSW. While comprehensive in scope, the EFSG is not exhaustive. Project teams must apply professional judgment in addressing specific project needs, site conditions, and applicable statutory and regulatory obligations.
