Teacher vacancies have been slashed in regional NSW public schools with 24 per cent fewer vacancies in Term 3 this year than the same time last year, as changes made by the NSW Government result in more teachers in NSW schools.

The improvement in teacher numbers in the regions comes alongside a drop in resignations and retirements, with teaching vacancies in the regions at the lowest number start since August 2021.

Rural and remote regions, which have been traditionally difficult to staff, have all seen a surge in vacancies being filled. From Term 3 2023, vacancies have dropped 39 per cent in Rural North including Grafton, Northern Tablelands and Armidale, and 20 per cent in Rural South and West, including Orange, Griffith, and Albury.

The results follow the government’s 2023 Temporary Workforce Transition Initiative which saw more than 4800 temporary teachers and 4700 temporary school support staff made permanent employees in rural, remote, and regional schools.

Having already delivered NSW public school teachers the biggest pay rise in a generation while addressing teacher workload, the NSW Government is taking extra steps to ensure our state’s regions are great places to work for our teachers.

Initiatives and incentives to attract teachers to rural and remote areas of NSW include:

• Expanding the department’s Priority Recruitment Support to an additional 26 schools in regional, rural and remote areas, providing targeted support to schools experiencing specific staffing challenges
• Rural Teacher Scholarships for high-achieving university students
• Recruitment bonuses for key roles, Rental Subsidies and Retention Benefits in targeted rural areas
• Rural and Remote Relocation Support
• Stamp Duty Relief payment
• Conducting the ‘Beyond the Line’ program; a week-long rural and remote school tour for teaching students to get a taste of living and working in these areas.

Deputy Premier and Minister for Education and Early Learning Prue Car said:

“There has never been a better time to consider a teaching job outside of the major cities.

“The Minns Labor Government has pulled out all the stops to support teachers and support staff to make career moves to places where they are needed most.

“The sustained drop in vacancies shows we’re making progress on addressing the teacher shortages left by the former NSW Liberal National Government, ensuring we have qualified teachers in every classroom to support student outcomes.