New laws passed to ban abusive or violent parents from public school grounds in SA
Abusive parents and carers now face fines of up to $7500 for harassing teachers – including when they’re not at school.
SA News
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A parent who punched a child in the face as they were leaving school is among cases revealed in a state government crackdown on adults who attack or threaten students or teachers.
The shocking incident happened at a country high school where the parent was seen repeatedly punching a student in the head.
However, because it happened just outside the school gate, the parent could not be banned from the school grounds over the attack.
New laws, which passed parliament this week, expand the powers of principals and preschool directors to ban violent or abusive parents, including for incidents that happen off campus.
This could include during school excursions, in public places such as the local shopping centre or via online communication.
Latest figures show 108 parents were barred from schools last year – a slight drop from 137 in 2023.
However, the number has surged from just 38 in 2020.
Last year, there were 246 formal warnings given for threatening or violent behaviour by parents or carers – up from 232 the previous year.
The number of “respectful communication reminders” issued has surged from 14 to 163 over the same period.
Education Minister Blair Boyer said he was “disturbed by the stories I have heard about some of the behaviour teachers and principals are experiencing”.
“We have heard from our educators that some parents and caregivers’ behaviour has worsened, and I will not sit on my hands and do nothing,” he said.
The new laws empower principals and preschool directors to ban adults from coming within 25m of a campus or to attend off-site events such as camps or excursions.
The laws extend to online communication – including posts to social media, emails or internet messaging services – in a bid to protect teachers from threats or abuse when they are not at work.
The maximum barring period has stretched from three to six months, and the maximum penalty increased from $2500 to $7500.
The new laws would cover the attack reported at the country high school, by enabling principals to ban parents for incidents that happen within 10m of a school’s boundary.
In November 2023, the parent involved first argued with a student while walking through the schoolyard.
They then motioned to another student to follow them and, once through the school gate, punched that student in the head repeatedly.
The incident was seen by many students and staff, who intervened.
The parent was banned from the school for their harassment of the first student inside the school gates.
Mr Boyer said he hoped the new laws would “provide a stronger deterrent for those who choose to abuse, threaten or attempt to intimidate our staff”.
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