Page 1141 - Week 03 - Thursday, 22 March 2012
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around suspensions was made as a direct result of representations from the Canberra community about ensuring schools are safe and provide learning in a positive environment.
The amendment to the Education Act 2004 was passed by the Legislative Assembly on 23 February 2010 and changes to the legislation came into effect on 4 March 2010. The change in the Education Act 2004 to delegate authority to principals to suspend students from ACT public schools for up to 15 continuous days initiated the change to the policy.
Section 36 of the Education Act 2004 is the legislative basis on which suspensions, transfer or exclusion of students can occur. It is the role of the Education and Training Directorate to develop and amend its policies to reflect legislation. In accordance with standard practice outlined in the directorate’s policy management manual, consultations on the revised policy occurred with a range of stakeholders, including the ACT Human Rights Office, the Australian Education Union, the ACT Council of P&C Associations, the Youth Coalition of the ACT, ACT Health, Catholic Education Office, Association of Independent Schools, the Canberra Institute of Technology, Community and Public Sector Union, Community Services Directorate, all staff of the ACT Education and Training Directorate, and the Australian Federal Police.
No concerns were raised in relation to the removal of the specific reference to weapons or risk of safety to staff or students.
Schools—weapons
DR BOURKE: I was asked by Mr Hanson on 20 March a question, which I took on notice. The answer to the member’s question is as follows: the letter to the director-general of the Education and Training Directorate relating to a risk assessment was dated 21 February 2012.
Alexander Maconochie Centre—capacity
DR BOURKE: Mr Seselja asked a question on 21 March regarding the capacity of the Alexander Maconochie Centre. The answer to the member’s question is as follows: as is well known, the AMC is facing considerable accommodation pressures, not just because of the numbers but also because of other factors such as the need to keep separate a high number of protection detainees at the AMC. The government is considering a range of possible accommodation solutions. As part of this process the government commissioned a future correctional facility requirement study as part of the 2011-12 budget. ACT Corrective Services is also reviewing how decisions relating to classification of protection and other detainees are made.
Alexander Maconochie Centre—capacity
DR BOURKE: Mr Hanson asked me a question during question time on 21 March regarding the AMC’s capacity. The answer to the member’s question is as follows: we have 278 detainees in the AMC. Of these, 265 are male and 13 are female. Of the males, 167 are sentenced and 98 are remandees. The government had previously
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