Cage inquiry raises more questions than it answers

ACT Education Minister Joy Burch came under intense fire over her handling of the cage scandal in the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday, revealing that the cage was accessible to numerous students who used the classroom.

Ms Burch also suggested that a photo of a child reading a book within the cage had been taken to make a story book as part of the child's therapy.

"The structure was also accessed by kids in the class moving in and out...As I also understand, within that freedom of movement, perhaps there was an image taken to construct a story book," Ms Burch told the Assembly.

"This is where I think there was a storybook – a normal traditional part of therapy - when a child needs to point to visual cues about calming and other behavioural management - and it could have been used as that"

"Do I find it appropriate? Absolutely not"

Ms Burch said "I became involved too late because that structure had been in place for 17 days."

Opposition education spokesman Steve Doszpot said the reference to a 24 February quote – obtained through Freedom of Information - pre-dated any of the formal information issued in the inquiry – which simply lists the structure being built on March 10.

Mr Doszpot is seeking to force the Government to reveal how and when the school first considered the cage and what led to the failure of Education directorate staff to stop it being constructed and then used to contain a ten-year-old boy.

"What were the instructions given to the contractor about the construction of the cage at this time? Was he told it was for a child? Were there any elements in there that should have triggered any obligations on behalf of the contractor?"

Mr Doszpot said his office had received a number of calls from angry constituents who felt the issue had been covered up and that a principal had been made to take the blame.

Meanwhile, the directorate has confirmed that it asked government school principals to "remind staff of their obligations" relating to the privacy and confidentiality of students. A spokesman for Education Minister Joy Burch denied this was a gag order on principals, but conceded the cage issue was discussed in a meeting of principals late last week.

"Staff have been asked to raise any concerns with senior staff members should they have them, and principals have also been encouraged to contact their school communities and provide contact details should parents and community members wish to discuss any concerns."

Mr Doszpot said he was highly concerned about a lack of transparency around public servant involvement at the directorate level. Director-General Diane Joseph has refused to discuss how many staff were identified by the inquiry in having failed in their duty to alert more senior officers of the cage's existence. It was erected in the classroom for 17 days.

Mr Doszpot will table a motion in the Legislative Assembly on Wednesday calling on the government to table the terms of reference for the inquiry, the individuals who conducted the inquiry and their qualifications for doing so, as well as any legal advice the government receive on the issue.

He has also called for details over the process by which "the officers within the Education and Training Directorate will be investigated and by whom and the expected timeline for this inquiry".

Ms Burch said "Clearly the principal alone made the decision and there were others within that school – and this remains a very sad point for me – that did not respond accordingly. That is a failure of their behaviour and they will be dealt with."

In particular, Mr Doszpot said the Canberra community needed to be assured that what happened in the school did not amount to illegal imprisonment.

He believed the legal advice could be provided in a form which did not identify the school or the child at the centre of the scandal.

"The information that has been put into the public domain is simply not good enough."