Sarah McNicol

Led the Workforce Policy and Strategy Division of 35 FTE for four months, including successfully securing funding of $187m through the 2023/24 budget update process.

• Workforce Policy and Reform, Workforce Policy and Strategy Division, PSP, of the Workforce Policy and Reform branch I lead a branch of 12 staff to support the school and early childhood education reform agenda by developing policy, engaging with stakeholders and driving a strategic approach to Victoria’s education workforces
• I am responsible for leading capability development and performance management for the branch
• I report to the Executive Director, Workforce Policy and Strategy and I am a member of the Policy Strategy and Performance (PSP) executive leadership team.

• Of the School System Reform Branch I led a branch of between 12 and 16 staff which led the Department’s work on Initial Teacher Education policy, including the development of the ‘creating jobs in education’ budget bid
• The branch led major workforce policy projects, including advice on the future teacher supply, the ‘transforming the first years of teaching’ budget bid, as well as the Department’s policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, including work on the school closures taskforce, ‘back to school’ cabinet submissions and the policy proposal for the Tutor Learning Initiative.

• I managed a team of between four and five policy officers to develop education policy for Victorian schools
• This included managing the ‘Future Reforms Directions’ project which saw the initial development of the Department’s 10 year reform strategy for schools
• I also managed the remaking the Education and Training Reform Regulations 2007 which led to major reforms of school governance and home schooling
• I was also a member of the Department’s integrity leadership group which is responsible for setting the Department’s priorities in relation to fraud, corruption, sponsorship and gifts.

• My duties included briefing the Attorney-General and Justice Ministers, developing legislative proposals, drafting cabinet submissions, preparing regulations and negotiating with justice stakeholders
• I was responsible for personal injuries legislation, succession legislation, the Model Litigant Guidelines and I represented Victoria on the Legislative Governance Forum for Corporations
• I wrote two chapters of the Attorney-General’s report into “Access to Justice”
• The Review required engagement with a large range of stakeholders across the justice system in Victoria and nationally.

• My duties at the embassy included economic research, editing and drafting cables, preparing briefs on developments in European political and economic life, and attendance at briefings and conferences relating to economic and political issues.

• While at the Federal Court my duties included legal research, attendance in court with her Honour, liaising with parties, case management, and assistance with judgment preparation, editing and proof-reading
• I also travelled to other Federal Court registries around Australia to assist her Honour with appeals in the Full Federal Court., in the commercial litigation team
• My work at the firm included legal research and drafting, attendance in court, drafting letters of advice and court documents
• During my graduate year I also completed rotations in the Employment, Information Technology and Construction teams.