Schools across Australia are experiencing significant staffing pressures, with teacher shortages now widely recognised as a systemic and enduring issue. This report examines the lived experiences of teachers during unprecedented shortages, focusing on those who remain in hard-to-staff Australian schools and how systems can better support retention.

This inquiry provides an examination of the Australian construction sector’s ability to deliver both detached and high-rise housing. It analyses construction workflows, markets, regulation, workforce, technologies and supply chains. The report finds there is no overarching strategy aimed at addressing housing construction constraints. It provides eight interconnected options for policymakers and industry.

Modern slavery is a serious, pervasive and largely hidden human rights and safety issue. This report was commissioned to understand opportunities to improve Australia’s criminal justice response to modern slavery. The report identifies ongoing gaps in Australia’s criminal justice response to modern slavery that are preventing some victims and survivors from accessing justice and remedy.

This report highlights a central paradox in the Australian education system: results are going backwards despite two decades of increased government funding. The report asks whether the curriculum itself has become part of the problem. It calls for urgent reform of the Australian Curriculum, centred on two options.

This statistical report covers sexual offending proceeded against by police in all Australian states and territories for the period 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024. The report provides data on sexual offenders, sexual offence victims, youth offenders and adult offenders. In 2023–24, police proceeded against 10,359 individuals for sexual offences in Australia.