WA Education: Distressed parents use letter protest to demand Cook Government act on education review

Education Minister Sabine Winton spent an hour reading emotional messages from children, parents and school staff on Thursday, demanding urgent action to provide better access for students with disabilities. Some of the messages left on the steps of State Parliament were distressing, with a 13-year-old writing that “I just want to die Mum, just let me go, there is no hope left.” An attached note said there is “no ed support” within the teenager’s catchment, with the closest available place more than 400 kilometres away from his family’s home. A parent wrote: “My child needed an EA (educational assessment), not a punishment.” Another letter said a student was denied access to a bathroom. Ms Winton described the messages as heart-breaking, and said she wanted to read them all. “It hurts your heart,” she said. Organisers of the protest, in which more than 500 school bags and letters were placed on the steps of State Parliament, said the Minister must do more than listen. “We appreciate the Minister’s time, of course, and we also appreciate that she spent a substantial amount of time, genuinely giving the energy, the space, the attention that these voices deserve,” said Square Peg Round Hole convener Symone Wheatley-Hey. “But we need action. We need progress. Listening itself is not enough.” The long-awaited review of WA’s outdated School Education Act was tabled in Parliament in October, and made 15 recommendations to remove enrolment barriers and restrictive practices — including restraint or isolation — affecting children with disabilities. Ms Winton said the government was committed to ensuring that every child has access to the education to support their needs. “That’s clear from the fact that we as a Government instigated the review, an important review that families and children are waiting for,’’ she said. “It’s been about a month since I tabled that review, and our response to it, and I’m getting on with, in the first instance, (with) practical ways that we can support families and children.” Advocates and the WA Opposition want the Government to move on the review’s recommendation it set up an independent complaints, disputes and resolutions body. Ms Winton has committed to a review of the current process. “Action is being taken straight away,” she said. “By the end of the year, I expect the department to put in place better guidelines and supports for parents who do want to take up that process of complaints whilst we pursue, reviewing the guidelines and procedures.” Lifeline 13 11 14 Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800