The Education Directorate will next year hire three workplace safety experts dedicated to fighting violence against teachers and principals in Canberra's public schools.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The initiative, announced in the ACT budget, will be funded from within the directorate's existing budget.
ACT government budget papers said: "This initiative offers a risk assessment, problem-solving and preventative approach to ensuring safe environments within the educational setting."
There were 30 incidents of violence against public school principals and almost 200 reported incidents against teachers and principals combined to July last year.
Earlier this year, WorkSafe handed the directorate an improvement notice after an assault at a Tuggeranong school.
School infrastructure was the big winner in Tuesday's budget with about $90 million to be spent in the next financial year on expanding capacity and physical improvements to schools.
The bulk will fund ongoing works with $10.5 million on new capital works and $5.8 million on public school infrastructure upgrades. Non-government schools could share in $3.75 million for infrastructure upgrades, though funding is dependent on the federal government's final schools funding policy.
Harrison, Gold Creek, Neville Bonner and Palmerston Schools, as well as the new north Gungahlin school, will receive almost $30,000 in 2017-18 as part of a program eventually expected to improve each school's capacity.
It is expected the investment will allow for an extra 800 students in the Gungahlin area over the next four years.
In the south, Narrabundah College and Campbell Primary will receive a share in $1.2 million to be spent on asbestos removal and school upgrades.
Money was also set aside for a feasibility study which will explore building a new school in Denman Prospect in the Molonglo Valley.
Students in years 7 and 11 will begin receiving tablet computers from the government in the next financial year. The $4 million set aside for the program in 2017-18 will also be used to develop programs that ensure the devices are used to their full capacity.
Money was also set aside crossing guards or safety improvements at 20 ACT schools, fulfilling a promise made ahead of the 2016 election. It is unknown which schools will receive the funding.
Higher education, described as a priority by Chief Minister Andrew Barr and the ACT's largest service export, benefits from ongoing support of the Study Canberra initiative and support of specific programs at the University of Canberra and Australian National University.
Education is the second largest spend and makes up about one-third of the entire 2017-18 budget.
