Annual Report to the School Community

There is a minor update to the performance summary this year – refer to the School performance summary for the 2024 Annual Report chapter in the Guidance tab for further information.

Policy

This policy sets out the requirement for schools to develop an Annual Report to the School Community (Annual Report).

Summary

• It is a legislative requirement that all Victorian government schools prepare an Annual Report by 30 April each year, and that this includes specific information on student outcomes, attendance and financial activities.
• The Annual Report must be endorsed at a meeting of school council and attested to by the principal in the Strategic Planning Online Tool (SPOT) (staff login required).
• Annual Reports are provided by the department to the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority for publication on the State Register.

Details

The Annual Report provides an opportunity to share the school’s achievements and progress with the school community.

The preparation and publication of an Annual Report is a legislative and regulatory requirement for all schools under the Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (Vic), the Education and Training Reform Regulations (2017) and Ministerial Order 1280 (Constitution of Government School Councils) (DOCX).

The Annual Report is prepared in 2 parts:

• the performance summary, which details the school’s performance from the past year and trends over time. This is compiled by the department and can be downloaded from the performance summary tab of the Annual Report in SPOT
• the ‘About our school’ commentary, which is prepared by the principal and outlines the achievements of the school in the previous year.

The Annual Report must be endorsed at a meeting of school council and attested to by the principal in the Strategic Planning Online Tool (SPOT) (staff login required).

The Annual Report must be presented to the school community via a public meeting of the school council, and is published on the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA) State Register.

The Guidance tab includes advice for completing the Annual Report.

Exemptions from completing an Annual Report

All schools are required to complete an Annual Report for the school year, except for:

• new schools that were not in operation for the full school year, including those formed through a merger or de-merger
• schools that closed during the school year, including schools that formed part of merged or de-merged schools.

Note: If a school has been de-staffed, the senior education improvement leader should contact schoolannualreport@education.vic.gov.au

Guidance for non-compliant schools

Principals of schools that are not compliant with the Minimum Standards for school registration or Child Safe Standards cannot attest to the Annual Report. Schools that have received advice they are not compliant, or are concerned that this may be the case, must contact the department’s School Compliance Unit for support to become compliant, by phone: 03 9084 8788 or email: school.compliance@education.vic.gov.au

Guidance for hub and annexe schools

Schools in hub and annexe arrangements must each have a stand-alone Annual Report, with endorsement by the respective school. Principals of annexe schools can contact spot.support@education.vic.gov.au for technical assistance.

Related policies

• Annual Implementation Plan (AIP)
• Framework for Improving Student Outcomes (FISO)
• Minimum Standards and School Registration
• School Strategic Plan

Relevant legislation

• Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (Vic)
• Education and Training Reform Regulations 2017 (Vic)
• Ministerial Order 1280 (DOCX)

Guidance

This guidance contains the following chapters:

1. Guide to completing the Annual Report
2. School performance summary for the 2024 Annual Report
3. Completing the ‘About our school’ commentary
4. Endorsement and attestation
5. Quality assurance
6. Sharing the Annual Report with the school community

1. Guide to completing the Annual Report

This section covers the key steps for completing the Annual Report.

The Annual Report is completed in the Strategic Planning Online Tool (SPOT) (staff login required). To access the Annual Report:

• log on to SPOT
• on the school homepage under ‘Annual Report to the school community’ select the latest year from the drop-down box and click ‘Manage report’.

Step 1: February to March – Prepare the draft Annual Report for school council endorsement

• Principals should review the school’s performance summary and complete the ‘About our school’ section in SPOT. Refer to School performance summary for the 2024 Annual Report for further details about the performance summary. Further guidance on the ‘About our school’ section can be found in the Completing the ‘About our school’ commentary guidance chapter.
• Schools will have their logo pre-populated on the ‘Performance summary’ tab in SPOT. The ‘upload school logo’ function will continue to be available for new schools or schools who prefer to use a new image.
• Principals then attest to the school’s compliance with Minimum and Child Safe Standards and generate the draft Annual Report.
• Further guidance can be found in the Endorsement and attestation guidance chapter.
• Principals should organise to present the draft Annual Report at a school council meeting prior to 30 April. It is recommended that this meeting is arranged for Term 1 due to the timing of the school holidays.

Step 2: March to April – Annual Report presented and endorsed at a meeting of school council

• The draft Annual Report must be downloaded from SPOT and taken to a meeting of the school council for endorsement, with this endorsement noted in the meeting minutes.
• At this meeting, the school council are encouraged to identify a time to hold the public reporting meeting to share the final Annual Report with the community, and organise responsibility for publicising this meeting. It is recommended that the public reporting meeting takes place at the start of Term 3.

Step 3: By 30 April – Principal confirms school council endorsement of the Annual Report on SPOT

• The principal, as executive officer of the school council, must confirm on SPOT that the school council has endorsed the Annual Report. Further guidance can be found in the Endorsement and attestation guidance chapter.

Step 4: By 30 May – Respond to quality assurance requests where required

• Principals may be contacted by the department to update their Annual Report if it is found to not meet the legislative, regulatory or quality requirements.
• Schools will receive an email notification from SPOT that their Annual Report has either not been selected for quality assurance, or with the result of their quality assurance assessment.
• Further guidance on this process can be found in the Quality assurance chapter.

Step 5: July – Share the Annual Report with the school community

• The department provides the Annual Reports to the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA) to upload to their State Register (no action for schools).
• The final, fully attested Annual Report must be shared with the school community through presentation at a public meeting of the school council.
• Once schools have received notification that the quality assurance process has been completed, schools can download a final version of the Annual Report in SPOT from the ‘Attest and view report’ tab.
• It is recommended that schools publish the Annual Report on their school website.

2. School performance summary for the 2024 Annual Report

There are minor updates to the performance summary to reflect the 2 years of NAPLAN proficiency data now available.

Summary of NAPLAN updates

• A 2-year average of the percentage of students assessed as Strong or Exceeding proficiency levels for 2023 and 2024 is provided.
• Consistent with previous practice, 2022 NAPLAN measures will report separately on the percentage of students in the top 3 bands as these results are not comparable with the current reporting methodology.
• The 4-year average measures of the percentage of students in the top 3 bands will continue to be removed, until 4 years’ worth of data is available under the new NAPLAN reporting methodology.

All NAPLAN measures will continue to be reported at the school, similar school and state levels.

The school performance summary continues to include information on the school’s profile and outcomes and perception survey data in relation to learning, wellbeing and engagement. The performance summary is pre-populated for all schools and is available via the ‘Performance summary’ tab on SPOT (staff login required).

3. Completing the ‘About our school’ commentary

The ‘About our school’ commentary is prepared in the SPOT (staff login required) by the principal, supported by relevant leadership staff.

The ‘About our school’ commentary gives further context to data contained in the performance summary and contains the following sections, outlined further below:

• School context
• Progress towards strategic goals, student outcomes and student engagement:
  • Learning
  • Wellbeing
  • Engagement
• Other highlights from the school year (optional)
• Financial performance

While the Annual Report is a legislated requirement, it is also a meaningful opportunity for schools to communicate with their community. As such, the ‘About our school’ commentary must:

• be written in a clear and succinct narrative style accessible to a public audience (for example, using plain language, avoiding jargon)
• omit individual staff and contractor names, for privacy reasons
• contain minimal spelling and grammatical errors
• include a school logo.

Each year the department quality assures a random sample of Annual Reports to ensure they include the required elements and meet quality standards. Further guidance on this process can be found in the Quality assurance chapter.

‘School context’ section (approximately 300 words)

This section provides a clear and simple overview of key information about the school, including the following information:

• the school’s vision and values
• school size and structure, including the number of staff
• geographic location
• social and enrolment characteristics
• any other notable features of the school (can be elaborated on in upcoming sections).

‘Progress towards strategic goals, student outcomes, and student engagement’ section (approximately 900 words)

This section presents highlights related to the school’s progress towards the goals, strategies and student outcomes outlined in the School Strategic Plan (SSP) and Annual Implementation Plan (AIP).

This section provides context for the school community to easily interpret the data featured in the performance summary component of the Annual Report. There are subsections for Learning, Wellbeing and Engagement.

To complete the Learning subsection, schools:

• must outline how the school progressed their goals and supported improvement in student learning outcomes
• are encouraged to include 2 to 4 highlights related to learning
• are encouraged to reference learning data from the performance summary (or other sources as appropriate) to illustrate highlights, where appropriate.

To complete the Wellbeing subsection, schools:

• must outline how the school progressed their goals and supported improvement in student wellbeing outcomes
• are encouraged to include 2 to 4 highlights related to wellbeing
• are encouraged to reference wellbeing data from the performance summary (or other sources as appropriate) to illustrate highlights, where appropriate.

To complete the Engagement subsection, schools:

• must include commentary analysing student attendance, as this is required under the VRQA’s Guidelines to the Minimum Standards and requirements for school registration
• are encouraged to outline 2 to 4 highlights related to engagement, which is a key enabler of both student learning and wellbeing, in line with the Framework for Improving Student Outcomes (FISO) 2.0
• can also reference other activities related to attendance and retention, student voice and agency, or extracurricular activities and events that supported engagement.

Optional ‘Other highlights from the school year’ section (approximately 200 words)

This section is optional, and provides an opportunity for schools to share other highlights from the school year that may not fit in the learning, wellbeing, or engagement sections.

When completing this optional section, schools could consider significant activities or highlights that brought benefits to their school, students, or local community, focusing on those that they are most proud to share with their community.

For example, schools may choose to comment on:

• school camps and excursions
• school productions
• whole school events and celebrations
• sporting achievements
• activities undertaken as part of community partnerships or school grants
• environmental programs.

To maintain student confidentiality do not include the number of students in any category, if less than 5 or the equivalent percentage. If referring to an achievement involving a small number of students use phrases such as ‘a number of students’ or ‘several students’ instead of the exact number.

Note: If schools choose not to complete this optional section, it will not appear on their Annual Report.

‘Financial performance’ section (approximately 150 words)

This section of the ‘About our school’ commentary outlines the school’s financial position at the conclusion of the previous year. It supports the school community to understand the financial data available through the performance summary.

When completing this section, schools must:

• provide an explanation of the school's overall financial position
• identify any extraordinary revenue or expenditure items
• detail any contracts, agreements or arrangements entered into by the school council
• explain the sources of funding the school received, for example, equity funding, special grants or fundraising initiatives, as well as details of any additional state or Australian Government funding the school received beyond the School Resource Package.

4. Endorsement and attestation

Endorsement

Following principal attestation, the draft Annual Report must be downloaded from SPOT and taken to a meeting of the school council for endorsement, with this endorsement noted in the meeting minutes.

The school council may request updates to the Annual Report. In this case, it is recommended that it is motioned and noted in the meeting minutes that the Annual Report has been endorsed by the school council, pending the requested changes. This enables the Annual Report to be finalised without having to be taken back to a subsequent school council meeting for endorsement.

At this meeting, the school council are encouraged to identify a time to hold the public reporting meeting to share the final Annual Report with the community, and organise responsibility for publicising this meeting. It is recommended that the public reporting meeting takes place at the start of Term 3.

Attestation

By attesting the Annual Report, the principal attests that:

• all teachers at the school meet the registration requirements of the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT)
• the school meets prescribed Minimum Standards for registration as regulated by the Victorian Regulation and Qualifications Authority (VRQA) in accordance with the Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (Vic) (this includes any exemption granted to this school by the VRQA, for the most recent calendar year, in relation to minimum student enrolment numbers and/or the curriculum framework requirement to deliver a languages program)
• the school meets the requirements of the Child Safe Standards as prescribed in Ministerial Order 1359 – Implementing the Child Safe Standards – Managing the risk of child abuse in schools (PDF).

Note: Principals of schools that are not compliant with the Minimum Standards or Child Safe Standards cannot attest to the Annual Report. Schools that have received advice they are not compliant, or are concerned that this may be the case, must contact the department’s School Compliance Unit for support, by phone: 03 9084 8788 or email: school.compliance@education.vic.gov.au

As executive officer of the school council, the principal attests that the 2024 Annual Report to the School Community:

• has been tabled and endorsed at a meeting of the school council under the Education and Training Reform Regulations 2017 (Vic)
• will be publicly shared with the school community.

How to attest in SPOT

Principals should follow the steps outlined below to attest the Annual Report in SPOT:

• log on to SPOT
• on the school homepage, under ‘Annual Report to the School Community’, select the latest year from the drop-down box and click ‘Manage Annual Report’
• navigate to the ‘Attest and view report’ tab
• attest the Annual Report by clicking the ‘Attest Annual Report’ button.

Making changes to the Annual Report after attestation

If, for any reason, changes to the Annual Report are required after principal attestation, principals must follow the steps outlined below:

• click the ‘Edit About our school commentary’ button under the ‘Attest and view report’ tab in SPOT to revert the Annual Report to draft
• make any adjustments required in the ‘About our school’ tab
• re-attest the Annual Report, once the required changes have been made
• share changes with the school council, if required.

5. Quality assurance

The department quality assures a random sample of Annual Reports each year to ensure they meet quality standards.

To meet quality standards, Annual Reports must:

• meet the relevant legislative and regulatory requirements
• be written in a clear and succinct narrative style accessible to a public audience (for example, using plain language, avoiding jargon, omitting individual staff and contractor names for privacy reasons)
• contain minimal spelling and grammatical errors
• include a school logo
• meet privacy requirements by not including any of the following:
  • names of staff, students, contractors or department staff
  • any reference to Out of Home Care programs
  • number of students in any category, if less than 5 or the equivalent percentage
  • number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff.

Schools will receive an automatic email from the SPOT (staff login required) to let them know when they have passed quality assurance, if any action is required to meet quality assurance standards, or if they have not been selected for quality assurance.

Annual Reports that do not meet quality assurance standards will be returned to the school with feedback through SPOT. Schools can check the quality assurance status of their Annual Report in SPOT by clicking on the ‘Quality assurance’ tab in the Annual Report and looking under the ‘Quality assurance status’ heading.

Once a school has been notified that they have passed or have not been selected for quality assurance, the Annual Report can be shared with the school community.

Schools seeking additional support to meet quality assurance can contact the School Planning, Review and Annual Reporting Unit by emailing schoolannualreport@education.vic.gov.au

6. Sharing the Annual Report with the school community

Schools will receive an email notification from SPOT that their Annual Report has either not been selected for quality assurance or has passed quality assurance and their final Annual Report can be shared.

Once schools receive this notification, they can download the final Annual Report from SPOT (staff login required) in the ‘Attest and view report’ tab.

The final, fully attested Annual Report must be shared with the school community via a public meeting of the school council. It is recommended that the public reporting meeting takes place at the start of Term 3.

The Annual Report will be published by the VRQA on their State Register. It is also recommended that schools upload their Annual Report to the public section of their school website.

Resources

Resources for technical support

• SPOT troubleshooting guide (DOCX) (staff login required)

Useful contacts

• For SPOT technical support, please email: spot.support@education.vic.gov.au
• For questions regarding the Annual Report process, please email: schoolannualreport@education.vic.gov.au