❓ The Minister for Education provides an update on the Cook Labor government's plan to support WA schools in managing violence and ensuring the safety of staff and students, highlighting new resources, empowered principals, and stricter consequences for sharing fight content.
AnsweredQoN 490Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
SCHOOLS — VIOLENCE
490. Ms M.M. QUIRK to the Minister for Education:
I refer to the Cook Labor government's
commitment to ensuring that schools across Western Australia are equipped to
manage the risk of violence.
Can the minister update the house on
how this government is assisting WA schools to manage violence and ensure that
all staff and students are protected from violent behaviour?
490. Ms M.M. QUIRK to the Minister for Education:
I refer to the Cook Labor government's
commitment to ensuring that schools across Western Australia are equipped to
manage the risk of violence.
Can the minister update the house on
how this government is assisting WA schools to manage violence and ensure that
all staff and students are protected from violent behaviour?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for her question
and her interest in all things educational. As we know, violence, aggression
and bullying do unfortunately take place at our schools, and it is of course
completely unacceptable. Every parent has a right to send their child to school
and expect they will be in a safe, nurturing and supportive environment, and
every staff member should feel safe in their workplace. Recently, we announced
that at the commencement of term 3 our government would stand strongly behind
our staff in protecting staff and students against violence when we announced Standing
together against violence , an updated plan to strengthen support for
schools to protect all students and school staff from violent behaviour. It
includes new connect and respect resources that were developed to reinforce and
clearly outline the expectations for schools, parents and carers to keep our
schools safe and to continue to work together in the best interests of our
students.
We have also empowered principals to
use existing laws and policy measures against those who behave in a threatening,
intimidating or physically violent manner towards staff or students. This
includes offences that are communicated both
in person and online. To protect our students and staff we will support our
principles in excluding aggressive people from the school site. This
support includes a dedicated email and phone line service available to
principals to provide advice on how to manage the escalating process,
assistance on issuing prohibition orders and on obtaining legal advice. We are
also building on existing measures. Previously, students who chose to film fight content were suspended. We will now also
suspend students who choose to share fight content on social media even
if they did not take the film. We continue to work with principals and staff to
ensure that we can have a school system that is as safe as possible.
When we made this announcement, we received support from
across the sector, and I would like to tell the house about some of those
responses. Matt Jarman, the president of the State School Teachers'
Union of WA, said —
''The
first impact our school leaders and teachers will feel is confidence that they
will now have unwavering support � to prohibit a parent or to
automatically suspend, or even necessarily exclude a student,'' �
Melissa Gillett, Secondary School
Executive Association president, said —
''The vast majority of parents
work in partnership really well with schools, but on those occasions it doesn't,
it's nice for principals to know they've got the backing of the
system to take the steps they need to take.
Niel Smith, WA Primary Principals'
Association president, said —
� members would welcome the clearer
guidelines on social media abuse that would eliminate grey areas and save
principals' time.
By working together to keep our
schools safe for learning, school staff can now focus on what they are there
for, which is to teach students and ensure they are provided with every
opportunity possible to reach their potential. I conclude by saying that I, as
Minister for Education, and the Cook Labor government have the principals'
backs.
and her interest in all things educational. As we know, violence, aggression
and bullying do unfortunately take place at our schools, and it is of course
completely unacceptable. Every parent has a right to send their child to school
and expect they will be in a safe, nurturing and supportive environment, and
every staff member should feel safe in their workplace. Recently, we announced
that at the commencement of term 3 our government would stand strongly behind
our staff in protecting staff and students against violence when we announced Standing
together against violence , an updated plan to strengthen support for
schools to protect all students and school staff from violent behaviour. It
includes new connect and respect resources that were developed to reinforce and
clearly outline the expectations for schools, parents and carers to keep our
schools safe and to continue to work together in the best interests of our
students.
We have also empowered principals to
use existing laws and policy measures against those who behave in a threatening,
intimidating or physically violent manner towards staff or students. This
includes offences that are communicated both
in person and online. To protect our students and staff we will support our
principles in excluding aggressive people from the school site. This
support includes a dedicated email and phone line service available to
principals to provide advice on how to manage the escalating process,
assistance on issuing prohibition orders and on obtaining legal advice. We are
also building on existing measures. Previously, students who chose to film fight content were suspended. We will now also
suspend students who choose to share fight content on social media even
if they did not take the film. We continue to work with principals and staff to
ensure that we can have a school system that is as safe as possible.
When we made this announcement, we received support from
across the sector, and I would like to tell the house about some of those
responses. Matt Jarman, the president of the State School Teachers'
Union of WA, said —
''The
first impact our school leaders and teachers will feel is confidence that they
will now have unwavering support � to prohibit a parent or to
automatically suspend, or even necessarily exclude a student,'' �
Melissa Gillett, Secondary School
Executive Association president, said —
''The vast majority of parents
work in partnership really well with schools, but on those occasions it doesn't,
it's nice for principals to know they've got the backing of the
system to take the steps they need to take.
Niel Smith, WA Primary Principals'
Association president, said —
� members would welcome the clearer
guidelines on social media abuse that would eliminate grey areas and save
principals' time.
By working together to keep our
schools safe for learning, school staff can now focus on what they are there
for, which is to teach students and ensure they are provided with every
opportunity possible to reach their potential. I conclude by saying that I, as
Minister for Education, and the Cook Labor government have the principals'
backs.
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