Page 514 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 20 February 2019
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independent inquiry takes us back to square one. It suggests that this is an issue that we do not know anything about and that we are not in a position to address. I do not think that that is the case. There is a series of programs and undertakings underway which are seeking to address this issue. We should give them the amount of time they need, and resources for those efforts, before we can know whether they have been effective.
Ms Lee’s motion mentions the Shaddock report, a report which provided 50 recommendations to improve supports for students with complex needs and challenging behaviours. I note that the issue of violence in our schools is broader than those issues covered in the schools for all program, which is what arose from the Shaddock report. It is important to be clear that it is not only students with special needs who are involved in violent incidents. Let us not forget that the Shaddock report was about students with special needs.
We do recognise that a number of the schools for all recommendations will have an impact on preventing and reducing violence in our schools because some students with special needs are involved in violence. The government has demonstrated a genuine and ongoing commitment to the schools for all program. An independent oversight group was established for the first year. A program board, chaired by the Director-General of the Education Directorate, has been monitoring progress since that time. The final evaluation report is due to be given to the education minister this year. In terms of having independent oversight, that report is going to come out and we as an Assembly will be able to read it and judge whether we think those 50 recommendations from schools for all have been adequately implemented.
Ms Lee makes the assertion that despite the significant time and resources that have been directed into the schools for all program we are still seeing violent incidents in our schools. I once again go back to my previous point: that the response to violence in schools is broader than the issues related to complex students. Additionally, it is premature to suggest that the schools for all program has not been effective.
The Education Directorate, the Catholic Education Office and the Association of Independent Schools of the ACT have all been working through the recommendations of the report. While this has been a long process, that is because the process of culture change can be a lengthy and difficult one. I understand that the government’s focus has been on ensuring that the implemented changes result in an enduring change rather than simply ticking a box. I support this approach and I look forward to seeing the final evaluation report presented to the Assembly this year.
In addition to the significant reforms we have seen through schools for all, in September 2018 the ACT Education Directorate entered into an enforceable undertaking with the Work Safety Commissioner, outlining a series of actions to improve compliance with their occupational violence policies and procedures. This undertaking came with more than $10 million worth of resourcing. Through a motion passed by the Assembly last year, the minister is required to report back to the Assembly on the completion of all strategies. There will also be progress reporting through the Education Directorate’s annual report.
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