Ms O’CONNOR question to MINISTER for EDUCATION, Ms PALMER
I rise to obtain an answer to a question I asked the Minister for Education yesterday about troubling data contained in the annual report of the Office of the Independent Regulator. I understand the minister has an answer now.
ANSWER
Mr President, there is nothing more important than the safety of our children and our young people. Our government is committed to upholding institutional accountability through full compliance with the Child and Youth Safe Organisations Framework, including the Reportable Conduct Scheme and the Child and Youth Safe Standards. In terms of the 189 notifications from education services detailed in the Office of the Independent Regulator’s 2024-2025 Annual Report, it is my understanding these notifications came from government and non-government schools, school systems, early childhood education and tertiary education.
I also understand the data does not represent whether the allegations have been substantiated or not. I acknowledge the commentary you referred to from the OIR’s annual report regarding observations of significant shortfalls in core skills, a lack of quality training and upskilling, and a tendency of some organisations to prioritise privacy over child safeguarding. I note these were overarching observations in the report, reflecting on what the independent regulator has seen across all entities it’s engaged with.
The Department for Education, Children and Young People has undertaken considerable effort over recent years to ensure all workers understand their obligations to keep children and young people safe. All staff, volunteers, and external providers must complete annual safeguarding training to build on their existing skills and knowledge to respond to and support, children and young people. impacted by child abuse. Staff training includes a mandatory reporting training module, a child sexual abuse awareness training module and a requirement to acknowledge the department’s conduct and behaviour policy and standards. The mandatory reporting training module provides staff with information about their obligations to report concerns about child abuse. All other workers, such as volunteers and relief staff, must complete their training before working with, or around, children and young people.
In relation to reportable conduct schemes specifically, the department’s complaints management oversight unit works closely with the OIR and has established compliance mechanisms to ensure notifications are sent to the regulator. With all the effort that has gone into ensuring staff are aware of their obligations and robust reporting processes are in place, it is reasonable to expect to see a significant portion of notifications to be coming from education, along with child safety and youth justice services. Furthermore, in response to recent serious national child safety incidences in the early childhood education and care sector, education ministers from around the country have collectively agreed on actions to ensure safety of our children attending early childhood education and care services. These actions include:
- Mandatory child safety training will be introduced for all ECEC staff, volunteers and students.
- Establishing a national educator register to give regulators visibility of who is working in the sector and where they are working.
- A national CCTV assessment will commence in up to 300 services nationally to build an evidence base for safe and ethical use of surveillance in ECEC settings.
- From September 25, personal mobile phones and devices capable of.capturing images have been banned or restricted during direct work with children.
- Expansion of unannounced spot checks. Families will have greater access to compliance information via startingblocks.gov.au and changes to national law.
As these actions are implemented, it is likely we will see further increases in notifications from ECEC providers, which I understand are included in the OIR’s Education Services category. I am extremely grateful for the work of the OIR and the important role it plays in holding organisations to account and keeping our children and young people safe. I was heartened to read further commentary from the independent regulator in the annual report acknowledging the hard-working people that her office engages with. People who are keen to do the right thing and candid about their need to learn and grow.
This is what we must all continue to do, keep learning and growing so we can continue to deliver better outcomes for our children and young people. Our government takes all allegations of harm or abuse against children and young people extremely seriously. My department works closely with the Office of the Independent Regulator to ensure all allegations raised through its services are appropriately reported, investigated and addressed.
