Question Time

CHILD PROTECTION

Mr MARSHALL (Norwood—Leader of the Opposition) (14:51): My question is to the Minister for Education and Child Development. When was a complaint first lodged with the department against a teacher at a southern suburbs school for failing to comply with mandatory reporting obligations in relation to the alleged sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl by a year 12 student attending the same school, and has an investigation into these allegations been undertaken?

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE (Wright—Minister for Education and Child Development, Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (14:52): What I can inform the house is that in 2010 five female students were interviewed by staff of a southern suburbs school in relation to a matter that at the time was deemed to be sexual harassment. The school made that assessment and teachers are trained—

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE: I'm sorry? Teachers undergo mandatory training in relation to these matters and my understanding is that, on the information they had at the time, they made the assessment that it was a harassment issue. The person who was the subject of this was suspended from school and the reports that were accessed from the school indicated that parents were contacted as a result of those incidents.

I now understand that in March of this year, the family approached police, making allegations about the incident in 2010 as well as another incident that occurred in 2011. There is no record, as I understand it, of the school being advised about the 2011 incident and my understanding also is that the perpetrator was no longer at the school.

The department was contacted, I understand—teachers were interviewed by SAPOL as a result and provided what information they had. SAPOL interviewed the other students involved and I understand that no further charges have been laid in relation to those interviews and that there was an arrest made in May of this year as a result of the police investigation.