The Victorian Home Education Advisory Committee (VHEAC) provides guidance, information and feedback to the Department of Education and Training (DET) and the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA, the home education regulator) on the operation of the Regulations. This advice is used by DET and VRQA to inform the development and implementation of the home education guidelines, support materials and templates plus other non-regulatory matters as they arise.

Your VHEAC reps are fellow home educators who strive to represent the whole home education community and ensure that the legal regime remains reasonable. VHEAC was due to end in mid 2019, but the impact and importance of this committee resulted in its continuation.

In August 2021, the second VHEAC election was held. There were five nominees for the positions for Home Education Representatives, and two nominees for the position of Disability Advocate. The following home ed reps were elected: Megan Fisher, Kamya Foster and Kirsty James, along with disability advocate Heidi Ryan. Welcome!

HEN thanks all the nominees for their willingness to take up these important roles and outgoing reps Mark Bachmann, Litsa Grace and disability advocate Mish Baker for their past VHEAC service—in Mark’s case attending DET meetings even before VHEAC began. The new reps will serve for four years with the continuing reps serving for another two. This staggered turnover of reps is designed to provide continuity and corporate memory.

VHEAC includes up to seven home education representatives (including a disability rep). The following members of VHEAC currently represent the home education community:

  • Ben Clark                                                 ben6clark (at) gmail (dot) com
  • Faye Coker                                              faye@home-ed.vic.edu.au
  • Megan Fisher
  • Kamya Foster
  • Kirsty James                                           kirsty@home-ed.vic.edu.au
  • Pavlina McMaster                                  pavlina@home-ed.vic.edu.au
  • Susan Wight                                            swight@home-ed.vic.edu.au

VHEAC also includes home education academic, Dr Glenda Jackson and disability advocate Heidi Ryan.

There is a VHEAC secretariat within DET which can be contacted at vheac@edumail.vic.gov.au

To find out more about how VHEAC works, read this article by outgoing home ed rep Mark Bachmann

VHEAC news and communiques are here.