Government funding of VET – 2019 data now available

Media release

15 December 2020

In 2019, government funding of the Australian vocational education and training (VET) system totalled $6.4 billion, an increase of 3.2 per cent compared with 2018.

This figure includes:

  • Australian Government contributions of $2.6 billion (down 4.5 per cent)
  • State and territory government contributions of $3.7 billion (up 9.4 per cent).

The Australian Government also provided:

  • $275.9 million for VET Student Loans, including grandfathered VET FEE-HELP loans (down 7.2 per cent)
  • $222.4 million for Trade Support Loans (up 4.9 per cent).

A total of $6.4 billion in VET funds were distributed (up 5.5 per cent) including:

  • $4.9 billion for VET delivery (up 6.4 per cent)
  • $593.8 million for employer assistance (similar to 2018)
  • $148.7 million for student assistance (down 14.6 per cent)
  • $550.4 million for system administration and governance (similar to 2018)
  • $181.1 million for capital investment (up 51.1 per cent).

Background

Government funding of VET 2019 provides insight into the flow of funding in the public VET sector, including what is funded and how funding is distributed.

Funding is provided through VET appropriations and VET intergovernmental funding arrangements.

The information in this report is derived from the National VET Funding Collection, which was introduced in 2017 to replace the National VET Finance Collection. The scope for each collection is different and therefore data from the two collections cannot be directly compared.

Data are sourced from financial and training records held by the Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment, and state and territory departments responsible for VET.

DOWNLOAD: Government funding of VET 2019

Enquiries: Helen Wildash M: 0448 043 148 E: helenwildash@ncver.edu.au


About NCVER: We are the main provider of research, statistics and data on Australia’s VET sector. Our services help promote better understanding of VET and assist policy-makers, practitioners, industry, training providers, and students to make informed decisions.

This work has been produced by NCVER on behalf of the Australian Government and state and territory governments, with funding provided through the Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment.