This policy explains what ‘duty of care’ means, how teaching staff may discharge their duty of care to students, and circumstances in which non-teaching staff, external providers and volunteers may owe students a duty of care.

These procedures ensures that employees are aware of their obligations under the Working With Children Check (Criminal Record Checking) Act 2004 (the Act) and ensures that the Department maintains compliance with the Act.

The policy provides an operational framework to raise employees’ and line managers’ knowledge and understanding of entitlements and responsibilities related to leave eligibility, application and approval processes. It ensures that employees and line managers are informed about, leave procedures and leave management strategies under relevant Awards and Agreements.

The Department registers home educators and evaluates their educational programs and children’s progress.

Animals can enrich students’ learning experiences, however schools must adhere to consistent and high quality practices for the care and use of animals. Staff are to adhere to the processes of the Schools Animal Ethics Committee for the use of animals for any scientific teaching activity and/or adhere to the processes of Agricultural Education for the use of animals on school farms.

Details the approval process for external parties wanting to conduct research on Department sites and information requirements for research projects regarding consent, participation, withdrawal, required checks and confidentiality.

This framework provides information for employees in relation to their obligations and responsibilities with respect to privacy and responsible information sharing.

The Staff Conduct and Discipline policy applies to all employees of the Department of Education and describes the expectations the Department has of its employees and outlines the processes that will be implemented should an allegation of a breach be made.