Legislation

Legislation that guides our work

Legislation sets out what the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT) can and must do. It supports the delivery of high-quality teaching, promotes the safety and wellbeing of children and helps maintain public trust and confidence in the profession.

The VIT operates under the Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (Vic)(the Act) and other relevant legislative frameworks.

Under the Act, VIT is responsible for regulating and recognising members of the teaching profession in Victoria. 

These functions, as set out in the Act, include:

• setting and maintaining professional standards and a code of conduct
• approving and overseeing teacher education and professional learning programs
• granting and renewing teacher registration
• maintaining public registers
• investigating conduct, competence and fitness to teach, including taking disciplinary action where appropriate.
• supporting professional development, promoting research, and providing advice on matters relating to teachers and the teaching profession. 

In carrying out our role, we prioritise the safety and wellbeing of children, uphold community expectations and have regard to raising the quality of teaching.

Alongside defining our functions, the Act sets the framework for how we perform our regulatory role, manage our operations, and share information with other bodies and individuals where permitted by law.

Other legislative frameworks 

In carrying out our role, VIT operates within, and is subject to, a range of legislative frameworks. These laws collectively regulate how we perform our functions, including how we collect, use and share personal, sensitive and health information, and how we uphold the safety, wellbeing and rights of children and the broader community.

Read the legislation

• Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (Vic)
• Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic)
• Health Records Act 2001 (Vic)
• Child Wellbeing and Safety Act 2005 (Vic)
• Family Violence Protection Act 2008 (Vic)
• Worker Screening Act 2020 (Vic)
• Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 (Vic)
• Commission for Children and Young People Act 2012 (Vic)
• Other relevant legislative schemes