The Australian Principal Occupational Health, Safety and Wellbeing Survey – 2024 data NTPA released a media release

The Northern Territory Principals’ Association (NTPA) is deeply concerned by the results of the 2024 Australian Principal Occupational Health, Safety and Wellbeing Survey, which shows NT school leaders experiencing the highest rates of mental health red flags in the country.

NT school leaders work with some of the most socioeconomically disadvantaged and geographically isolated children and young people across Australia. The survey reveals alarming statistics about their wellbeing:

• 4% of NT school leaders received a "red flag" email indicating risk of serious mental health concerns - the highest rate nationwide and a significant increase from 47.1% in 2023.
• School leaders nationally in remote and very remote schools reported concerning rates of exposure to threats of violence (64.1%) and actual physical violence (59%).
• 6% of NT principals indicated an intention to quit - the fourth highest rate nationally. If this trend continues, an estimated 500 school leaders could leave the profession across Australia.
• Nationally, 43.9% of principals reported experiencing violence and security threats, with very remote school leaders triggering concerning risk indicators at a rate of 61.1%.

Statements attributable to NTPA President Carolyn Edwards:

"The data is clear - workload demands, violence, and mental health challenges continue to escalate for school leaders across the Northern Territory. We simply cannot ignore what the data trends have been telling us for well over a decade now.”

"While principals demonstrate exceptional commitment to educational excellence and unwavering dedication to NT students, they are increasingly overwhelmed by threats and incidents of violence. The impact of these challenges, combined with gossip and slander, is taking a severe toll on principals' wellbeing and morale."

"The ever-increasing burdens of workload expectations combined with safety concerns are contributing to the worrying results in this report. We desperately need additional support and resources from the government to address these critical issues before more dedicated educational leaders leave the profession."

“School leaders have been ignored for too long - it's time for a genuine commitment and investment that makes their wellbeing a top priority.”

“Education systems must have strong practices and processes to enact ‘no tolerance to violence’ policies to keep everyone safe in schools, students and staff.”

On Wednesday 2 April NTPA president was interviewed by Katie Wolf 

Listen HERE