Page 1876 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 8 June 2022
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use of suspensions and expulsions for students with disability. Through this bill we have revised the sections in the Education Act 2004 relating to suspensions, transfers, expulsions and exclusions to provide clarity about when and why they should be used, with a strengthened focus on safety.
We have separated the four different concepts into discrete sections and provided a meaning of “unsafe or non-compliant behaviour”, which is the rationale for enacting a suspension, transfer, expulsion or exclusion from an ACT school. As part of this definition, we have clarified that this includes when the behaviour of a student reduces the safety or effectiveness of the learning environment at the school, either through persistent or disruptive non-compliance, or by posing an unacceptable risk to the safety or wellbeing of another student, a member of staff or someone else involved in a school’s operation. The bill makes it clear that safety should be at the core of these actions.
The bill outlines the obligations for communicating with parents and students for any of these actions and the requirements to exhaust all reasonable alternatives before deciding to suspend, transfer, expel or exclude a student. The bill clearly outlines the requirements to provide safeguards for all students, including students with disability.
Should a student be suspended, to be compliant with section 27A of the Human Rights Act 2004, a requirement has also been added to communicate how the school intends to support the student to continue their education during the suspension.
It has also been mandated that the principal of a school must review the circumstances leading to the suspension and, for students with disability or complex care needs, review the implementation of any reasonable adjustments and make further adjustments that the principal considers would support the student to return to school safely.
The proposed amendments to suspension, transfer, expulsion and exclusion will provide clear parameters in which these actions can be taken, as well as ensuring the safety and wellbeing of staff, the student and other students at the school, alongside the right of the child to an education. These amendments will support school communities and systems to navigate what can, at times, be perceived as a tension.
The bill also strengthens the reporting of un-enrolments, terminations of contract, transfers, expulsions and exclusion by all schooling sectors. Since the coronial inquest into the death of Bradyn Stuart Dillon, there has been a focus on the need to monitor the movement of students between schools to ensure that students stay connected with the education system. This monitoring also enables the identification of known signs of risk and vulnerability, such as multiple movements between schools within a short period of time.
The bill proposes amendments to require the reporting of transfers, expulsions, exclusions, un-enrolments and contract terminations for non-government schools within five days of occurrence, through the student movement register. Oversight and monitoring of the student movement register for all schooling sectors, government and non-government, will be the responsibility of the Education Directorate, including following up on students who have not re-enrolled at a new school or education
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