Teacher resignations and retirements at every NSW public school revealed
A staggering number of NSW teachers left their posts last year in a mass exodus from the public system, with Western Sydney schools copping the biggest hit. See how schools near you fared.
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Nearly 2800 NSW teachers left their posts last year in an exodus from the public system, with Western Sydney schools copping the biggest hit.
The state recorded a massive 1779 permanent teacher resignations in 2024, while 1014 permanent teachers retired.
Four schools lost more than a dozen teachers each, and Parramatta was the worst affected region with 164 teachers resigning or retiring in total.
NSW Teachers Federation president Henry Rajendra said “more needs to be done to bring these numbers down”.
The union leader is calling on the state government to give teachers an extra two hours of “release time” from face-to-face classes per week, and a reduction in class sizes.
“We continue to pursue those the important improvements that not only make the profession more attractive, but actually support the learning of all our students – it goes hand in glove,” Mr Rajendra said.
Pittwater High School on Sydney’s northern beaches recorded the highest exodus with 14 teachers leaving, eight of whom quit while six others retired.
The school’s P & C president Steve Hall said he “could not comment” on the high number of recent departures – which the P & C had not been made aware of – but said the school was not immune to “market issues” in attracting and retaining educators.
“It’s a great school, but I can imagine that it’s difficult in the current climate, with the cost of living, to recruit the best teachers,” he said.
Pittwater High principal Alison Gambino said she was “pleased” to report that the school, which currently has no vacancies, has not seen any more resignations or retirements this year.
“Things that are making a difference include our HSC improvement program, providing teachers the opportunity to work with an academic partner once a term,” she said.
Several northern Sydney schools lost 10 or more teachers, including St Ives High School, Epping Boys High School and Narrabeen Sports High School.
Vincentia High School on the NSW South Coast lost more than a dozen teachers last year, with 10 resignations and three retirements in a school with fewer than 1000 students. It currently has five vacancies and is included in the Department of Education’s ‘priority recruitment’ program.
Principal Ruth Winfield said natural disasters and the Covid pandemic had affected “work patterns, rental costs and house prices” in the area, and the school had been provided a “temporary staffing supplement” which ended in 2024.
“We planned carefully over the past 18 months for a smooth transition from this temporary supplement to maintain a stable, committed, teacher workforce, matched to current local demographics,” she said.
Wadalba Community School on The Central Coast and the Ballina-based Southern Cross School of Distance Education also lost 13 teachers each.
However the latest figures do indicate an overall improvement in teacher retention with 72 fewer teachers quitting last year than in 2022, and 157 fewer resignations.
The Minns government has claimed it as a victory, with Treasurer Daniel Mookhey citing a 40 per cent drop in job vacancies in his Tuesday budget speech.
Acting Education Minister Courtney Houssos said the latest figures mark the first year in which resignations have declined in 13 years.
“Teacher resignations rose from 440 in 2013 to 1,854 in 2022 under the former Liberal National Government, with 74 per cent of that increase occurring under then-Education Minister Sarah Mitchell,” she said.
“During this time, she suppressed teacher wages and dismissed the teacher shortage as a ‘myth’ and ‘not overly concerning’.”
The shadow education minister meanwhile said teachers’ jobs remain “too hard” and “too unsafe”.
“NSW Labor promised to fix the teacher shortage, but we’re seeing more teachers walk away than those retiring,” Ms Mitchell said.
“The Minns Government can spin the numbers all they like, but if resignations continue to outpace retirements, we’re still in crisis.”
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