Hon Anne Tolley, in Committee, to move the following amendments:
New clauses 12AA to 12AD
To insert the following clauses after clause 12 (after line 34 on page 23):
12AA Interpretation
The definition of authorisation in section 120 is amended by omitting “persons”
and substituting “people”
.
12AB Restrictions on appointment of teachers
Section 120A is amended by repealing subsection (1) and substituting the following subsection:
12AC Restrictions on continued employment of teachers
Section 120B is amended by repealing subsection (1) and substituting the following subsection:
12AD New section 120C inserted
The following section is inserted after section 120B:
“120C Restrictions on activities of teachers whose practising certificate or limited authority to teach subject to interim suspension
“(1) This subsection applies to a person employed in a teaching position if—
“(2) While subsection (1) applies to a person, his or her employer—
“(b) if the person is employed at a registered school (within the meaning of section 2(1)) or an early childhood education and care service, must take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure that he or she does not undertake any activities that might bring him or her into contact with students enrolled at the school or, as the case may be, children who attend the service.
“(3) While subsection (1) applies to a person, he or she must not carry out any of the duties of the teaching position concerned.”
New clauses 12BA to 12BC
To insert the following clauses after clause 12B (after line 17 on page 24):
12BA Practising certificates
Section 130 is amended by adding the following subsections:
12BB Offences
Section 137(1) is amended by inserting the following paragraphs after paragraph (f):
“(fb) being the employer of a person to whom section 120C(1) applies, and the board of a State school, the managers of a school registered under section 35A, or the person or body who appoints staff at an early childhood education and care service, fails or refuses to take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure that the person does not undertake any activities that might bring him or her into contact with students enrolled at the school or, as the case may be, children who attend the service; or
12BC Interpretation
Section 139AB is amended by repealing the definition of authorised person and substituting the following definitions:
“authorised person means the holder of an authority
“authority means a limited authority to teach given under Part 10”.
Explanatory note
It is proposed to insert into the Bill the 7 new clauses set out in this Supplementary Order Paper.
Proposed new clause 12AA rectifies a minor verbal discrepancy between 2 definitions in section 120 of the principal Act.
Proposed new clauses 12AB to 12AD, and 12BA amend the principal Act to provide expressly for the consequences of the suspension of practising certificates and limited authorities to teach.
Proposed new clause 12AB amends section 120A of the principal Act so as to enlarge the category of people who cannot be appointed to a teaching position. At present, this is—
teachers who have had their registration cancelled, and have not since been registered again; and
people who have had their limited authority to teach cancelled, and have not since been registered as a teacher.
It will now also not be possible to appoint to a teaching position a teacher whose practising certificate is suspended or a person whose limited authority to teach is suspended. This will be the case whether the suspension is a disciplinary suspension under section 139AW(1)(d) of the principal Act, or is merely an interim suspension under section 139AU.
Proposed new clause 12AC amends section 120B of the principal Act so as to enlarge the category of people whose employment in a teaching position cannot be allowed to continue. At present, this is also—
teachers who have had their registration cancelled, and have not since been registered again; and
people who have had their limited authority to teach cancelled, and have not since been registered as a teacher.
It will now also not be possible to continue to employ in a teaching position a teacher whose practising certificate is subject to a disciplinary suspension or a person whose limited authority to teach is subject to a disciplinary suspension. Employment will, however, be able to continue in the case of an interim suspension.
Proposed new clause 12AD inserts into the principal Act a new section 120C dealing with the consequences of the interim suspension of practising certificates and limited authorities to teach. The employer of the holder of a teaching position whose practising certificate or limited authority to teach is subject to an interim suspension—
must ensure that he or she does not carry out any of the duties of the position; and
must take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure that he or she does not undertake any activities that might bring him or her into contact with students.
And the holder of a teaching position whose practising certificate or limited authority to teach is subject to an interim suspension must not carry out any of the duties of the position.
Proposed new clause 12BA amends section 130 of the principal Act, which relates to practising certificates, by adding provisions having the effect that where a teacher's practising certificate is subject to an interim suspension, any renewed practising certificate will be issued subject to that suspension.
Proposed new clause 12BB creates offences in relation to breaches of the obligations imposed by new section 120C.
Proposed new clause 12BC amends section 139AB of the principal Act so as to supply a minor omission in the definitions it contains.