Federation joins Hidden Disabilities Sunflower network to support non-visible disabilities
3 December 2025
Section: News
NSW Teachers Federation is now part of the global Hidden Disabilities Sunflower network, an initiative to empower people with hidden…
Students systemically denied access to inclusive education
30 October 2025
Section: News
“It is indefensible that students who have been formally assessed and deemed eligible for support classes are left without placement…
Time for government to step up
21 July 2024
Section: Columns
Enabling Equity: Education Quarterly, Issue 10 2024 The recent State of Our Schools survey results revealed that only five per…
Preschooling campaign seeks equality
2 May 2024
Section: News
The NSW Government’s announcement of 100 new public preschools is a significant first step towards Federation’s campaign for universal, public…
Full funding will help every student with disability succeed
1 May 2024
Section: Columns
Enabling Equity: Education Quarterly, Issue 9 2024 On 26 March, Federation gave evidence to the parliamentary inquiry into Children and…
Students with disabilities deserve better
29 April 2024
Section: News
One of the easiest things both the federal and state governments could do to address increased student complexity and the…
Ensuring all reach potential
27 November 2023
Section: Columns
Enabling Equity: Education Quarterly, Issue 8 2023 Through the national For Every Child campaign teachers continue to ensure students with…
Pursuing support issues with Department
8 September 2023
Section: Columns
Enabling Equity: Education Quarterly, Issue 7 2023 Federation regularly receives enquiries regarding the access of support for students with complex…
Investment in student wellbeing
8 June 2023
Section: Columns
Enabling Equity: Education Quarterly, Issue 6 2023 Figures released in February show student wellbeing has hit a new low and…
Disability support classes are a state responsibility
16 March 2023
Section: Columns
Enabling Equity: Education Quarterly, Issue 5 2023 The provision of support classes to enable the engagement of students with disability…
Registered Nurse Must Be Maintained At Special Education School In St Ives
22 October 2021
Section: Media Release
The NSW Teachers Federation demands the retention of a Registered Nurse (RN) position at Sir Eric Woodward School for Special Purposes at St Ives.
Teachers rise to the challenge
24 August 2021
Section: Columns
There is no question that adjusting to remote learning during the current COVID-19 lockdown is affecting all teachers, students and school communities, however, the situation for teachers in schools for specific purposes (SSP) and support units is particularly complex.
Inspiring others to find their inner ‘powers’
30 May 2021
Section: News
It would be wonderful to see schools recognising and implementing strategies to support teachers with multiple sclerosis (MS), so they can stay as valued members of the workforce, said North Curl Curl Public School teacher Maxine Gourley.
Disability: secret report exposes new wave
3 December 2020
Section: News
A confidential NSW government report has shed light on a critical and burgeoning challenge for public education as the number of students with disabilities is predicted to grow by 50 per cent in the decade to 2027.
Learning and support teachers
3 December 2020
Section: Columns
There are multiple roles teachers fill in contributing to the support of students with disability and additional learning and support needs including the learning and support team, the classroom teacher and the Learning and Support Teacher (LaST).
Media release: Students with disability to increase by 50% within a decade
3 September 2020
Section: Media Release
A confidential NSW Department of Education disability strategy obtained under FOI laws has revealed inadequacies in planning for the state’s students with disabilities.
Young People from Refugee and Migrant Backgrounds with Disabilities
20 August 2020
Section: Columns
What are the main issues and concerns raised by young CALD people living with a disability?
Department advice on disability data collection during COVID
11 August 2020
Section: News
The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD) provides information about the number of students with disability in schools and the adjustments they receive.
Students with disabilities left behind
31 July 2020
Section: News
As new reports highlight the growing funding gap between public and private students, research during the pandemic reveals that parents of students with a disability felt their children had been “left behind by Australia’s education system” during the crisis.
Staffing win helping to support students with disability during COVID-19
20 May 2020
Section: Columns
The COVID-19 pandemic hit hard our classes and teachers of students with disability. Responsive staff, additional staffing and the loud call for a targeted response to unique site and student needs relieved what threatened to be a disastrous outcome.
SSP and IEC teachers addressing additional complications to provide remote learning
9 April 2020
Section: News
Teachers in Schools for Special Purposes and Intensive English Centres are working with a unique set of challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic as they strive to provide educational continuity for students with special needs and English as an additional language or dialect requirements.