A 6 Aug 2025 a media release from the Victorian Premier included the following specious - superficially plausible but actually wrong -statement. "The Board of Inquiry heard that, while the Beaumaris cluster of abuse was particularly insidious, it was not isolated. It's on us to make sure these horrific acts never happen again. We are making sure the voices and experiences of all victim-survivors of abuse in government schools are heard forever - helping people heal by telling the truth."
As stated by Deputy Premier and Minister for Education Ben Carroll
"We can't undo the harm that was caused, but understanding the past abuse and institutional failures is essential to preventing it from ever happening again."
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This statement was misleading at best, and downright deceitful at worst, ignoring the following. The Victorian Government knows well its role in past failures regarding historic child sexual abuse in its schools, and doesn't need the truth telling process to focus on that.
Jenny Atta, Secretary, Department of Education, provided a witness statement to the Board of Inquiry into historical child sexual abuse in Beaumaris Primary School and certain other government schools on Friday 17 November 2023. Including
“Our schools and the department failed to protect you at a time when you were most vulnerable, when you were a child. I acknowledge this without qualification and genuinely believe that institutions, particularly public institutions, must own and be accountable for their history.
I have heard how many victim survivors felt unable to disclose their abuse. The education system did not arm them, as children, with the knowledge to know the abuse was wrong, or the language or processes to assist them in disclosing. It did not arm teachers with the skills to recognise the signs to identify and intervene to prevent further abuse. For those children who disclosed to an adult, they were often not believed. If they were believed, the response was woefully inadequate or inappropriate. The response left the victims and those seeking to protect them powerless and enabled the abuse of children to continue and spread.
The failings of the system are many. They include the following.
- There were no policies or processes to prevent abuse or guidance on how to respond to allegations when they were made.
- There was no training of teachers to be able to identify the warning signs of child sexual abuse.
- While there were processes that could have been used to remove the perpetrator from the teaching service, those processes were not/rarely used.
- Teachers were able to remain in their role or transfer to other schools and continue the abuse.
- It is utterly unacceptable that a child should suffer sexual abuse while they are under the care and supervision of a Victorian government school.”
https://www.vic.gov.au/statement-jenny-atta-secretary-department-education
The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse (Royal Commission) was established on 11 January 2013 and delivered its Final Report on 15 December 2017. Australia’s largest and most expensive Royal Commission to-date, the focus was on investigating institutional responses to child sexual abuse, including in government schools.
The Royal Commission 315 page FINAL REPORT Volume 13 Schools, identified in detail, the causes and failures of government schools, that enabled historic abuse of children in government schools.
What we are calling on the Victorian Government to do
We are requesting the Victorian Government ensure that the implementation of Recommendation 3: Establish a statewide independent truth-telling and accountability process, focusses its efforts and budget for this recommendation, on this process supporting the healing of survivors, families and communities.
Ensuring the accessibility of, and experiences of individuals participating in the truth telling process, are both safe and healing.
We are asking the Victorian Government to acknowledge the extensive information it already has on its past failures, that it has already communicated and apologised for.
We support Victorian Sexual Assault Services Victoria response to the to the report of the Board of Inquiry into historical child sexual abuse in Beaumaris Primary School and certain other government schools, as follows.
“On 6 March, the Victorian Government tabled the Board of Inquiry into historical child sexual abuse in Beaumaris Primary School and certain other government schools report.
The violence perpetrated by teachers at Beaumaris Primary School was disturbing, deeply harmful, criminal, and, tragically, not unique.
The recommendations in the Board of Inquiry's report will not achieve the transformative change required to prevent and respond to current as well as historical child sexual abuse.
In a statement, the Victorian Government has committed to a formal apology and stated that they will engage with victim survivors when considering implementation, but they make no mention of the systemic reform that is urgently needed.
We need action. We need law reform and the development of the promised 10-year Victorian sexual violence strategy promised by the Victorian Government to be delivered in 2022. And nothing works without a properly resourced funded workforce.
Sexual assault in institutional settings creates specific issues. We need the right people to lead the policy development and responses. Specialist sexual assault services work with these complex issues every day and are an independent source of expertise.
The sector is still waiting for the delivery of the comprehensive 10-year Victorian sexual violence strategy promised by the Victorian Government promised for 2022.”
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Thank you to all our supporters, you do enable our voice to the Victorian Government to be heard and acknowledged.