VCAA exam blunder leaves Victoria taxpayers footing $800k bill
The true cost of Victoria's unprecedented exam scandal has finally emerged, with taxpayers forced to spend hundreds of thousands on an independent monitor and reviews.
The cost of the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority’s 2024 exam bungle, which impacted 65 out of 74 tests sat by 90,000 students, has finally been revealed, setting taxpayers back upwards of $800,000.
Almost a year on since the cover sheet leak was exclusively uncovered by the Herald Sun, the Department of Education’s annual report has subtly given an insight on its unprecedented cost.
A staggering $553,000 was spent employing independent monitor Margaret Crawford to oversee the preparation and delivery of this year’s exams, which are currently underway.
It’s possible a similar expense could be incurred next year, with a root-and-branch review into the issue recommending the employment of an independent monitor for a further 12 months or until Education Minister Ben Carroll is satisfied that the VCAA has the systems and processes to undertake its functions effectively.
The review of the VCAA, which was ordered by Mr Carroll in the wake of the exam scandal, also cost taxpayers $303,000 – bringing the total price of the debacle to more than $800,000.
But the VCAA has admitted additional costs were incurred to fix the 2024 examination errors, including redeveloping, reprinting and redistributing tests – however these weren’t explicitly stated in the report.
Mr Carroll has repeatedly been asked to disclose the cost of the scandal, with Department of Education secretary Tony Bates also questioned by Liberal MP Richard Welch in the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee Inquiry into the 2025-26 budget estimates in June.
Mr Welch asked Mr Bates on notice to provide the committee with the breakdown of the cost of reviews into the VCE errors in 2022, 2023 and 2024.
In response, the committee was told costs spent on reviews and consultants would be published in the Department of Education and VCAAs annual reports.
Meanwhile, the VCAA recorded an underwhelming net surplus of $0.4m in 2024-25, down from $13.7m in 2023-24.
In its report, the VCAA attributed part of this decrease to rectifying the 2024 examination errors, and noted higher employee expenses, supplies and services also contributed to increased expenditure.
The exam scandal resulted in the dismissal of the VCAA board and the resignation of chief executive Kylie White, which also contributed to additional expenses.
The VCAA report reveals financial reporting lapsed between November 2024 and April 2025, as there was no suitably qualified chief financial officer in place, leading to inadequate governance and oversight of financial performance.
Three new senior executive service positions were established in the wake of the exam bungle, in addition to the appointment of Andrew Smith as the VCAA’s new chief executive.
The VCAA spent $2.17m on executive salaries in 2025, up from $1.67m in 2024.
This includes income paid to former chief Ms White but excludes payments to Marcia Devlin, who was interim chief following her resignation and David Howes who stepped in before current chief Andrew Smith.
The VCAA was accused of lacking the “foundational structures, governance, processes, technology and capabilities that are commonplace in modern organisations” in the second part of an independent review into the exam body last month.
It was also slammed for its poor workplace culture, not taking accountability and instead shifting blame, with many of its issues – such as last years VCE exam leaks and errors in the 2023 specialist maths exams – traced back to VCAA’s “origins of poor management”.
Independent reviewer Yehudi Blacher said such issues have manifested over five years, consequently contributing to “very poor workplace practices” and avoidable mistakes, which have had repercussions on students and teachers.
Opposition Education spokesman Evan Mulholland said learning the VCE exam bungle last year cost Victorians at least $800,000 was “frankly staggering”.
“This is not a few dollars here or there, this is hundreds of thousands of dollars that should have been spent in classrooms, on teachers, or on vital school infrastructure, instead of cleaning up Labor’s incompetence,” he said.
“Victorians deserve to know the exact cost of reprinting these exams.
“Until Labor gets serious about restoring integrity to the VCE and addressing the financial mismanagement in their portfolio, these blunders will continue to plague our education system and empty the state’s coffers.”
School satisfaction plunges as complaints rise
Satisfaction with government schools has plunged in Victoria, as new data reveals a sharp rise in complaints, falling student attendance, and weakening connection to school among pupils.
Only 71.6 per cent of state secondary parents are now satisfied with their child’s school, a fall of nearly ten per cent compared to five years ago, the Department of Education’s annual report for 2024-25 shows
81.6 per cent of primary school parents are satisfied with Victorian state schools, down from 85 per cent in 2020.
A surge in complaints about Victorian schools has also fuelled a 34 per cent jump in cases to the state’s education and training regulator.
The Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA) received 349 complaints in 2024-25, mostly related to the school sector according to its latest annual report.
The majority of school-related complaints centred on compliance with minimum standards for the care, safety and welfare of students, along with concerns about unregistered schools.
The Department of Education report reveals the proportion of Victorian students feeling connected to their school has fallen, dropping from 68.7 per cent in 2020 to 56.5 per cent in 2024.
The proportion of students with a disability who feel connected to their schooling has also dropped over time: from 66 per cent in 2020 to 57 per cent in 2024. Indigenous and regional and rural students also posted similar falls in connection.
The Department report, released on Thursday in the government’s annual “dump”, also shows attendance rates in all school sectors failed to meet targets.
A total of 27.6 per cent of Victorian students now receive an adjustment due to disability, which is more than the target of 25 per cent. The proportion of all children developmentally on track on all 5 domains of the Australian Early Development Census on entry to school dropped from 75.2 per cent in 2021 to 53.8 per cent in 2024.
Schools are also less safe for staff.
In 2024-25 the department reported 33,103 OHS incidents, up from 21,768 in 2022-23.
There were also 75 sexual offences and 371 sexual misconduct reports against DET staff.
Originally published as VCAA exam blunder leaves Victoria taxpayers footing $800k bill
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