Yipirinya School principal Gavin Morris stood down on full pay after alleged assault charges laid

A Red Centre school principal has been stood down on full pay, with the school still yet to confirm who is now heading the institution. LATEST DETAILS.

Yipirinya School, Alice Springs. Picture: Alex Treacy

A Red Centre principal has been stood down with full pay after he was charged over allegations of historic assaults on children.

Northern Territory Education Minister Mark Monaghan confirmed Yipirinya School Principal Gavin Morris has been stood down on full pay by the 10-person school council, according to the ABC.

No further action will be taken by the Education Department while the matter was before court, Mr Monaghan said.

Mr Morris was arrested and later charged with five counts of historic aggravated assault on August 9.

He is due to face Alice Springs Local Court for the first time on August 13.

Yipirinya School, in Alice Springs, issued a statement Friday morning acknowledging “the serious allegations” levelled against principal Gavin Morris.

In the statement, Yipirinya School said it “remains committed to transparency and co-operation with the authorities” while the investigation was ongoing.

“The Yipirinya School is deeply concerned and acknowledges the serious allegations against Dr. Gavin Morris,” the statement read.

Mr Morris’ status as principal remained unknown until Friday evening, with Yipirinya School initially saying they wished to make “no further comments on this matter”.

Yipirinya School Principal Gavin Morris at Yipirinya School. Picture: Gera Kazakov

“The Yipirinya School believes in due process and will fully co-operate with any ongoing investigations,” the statement read.

“As a community, this is a time of shock and sadness, and we respectfully request privacy around our school grounds to protect the students and staff as they navigate this difficult situation.

“We want to assure our community that the safety, wellbeing and education of our students is our highest priority.”

The statement said the school would “continue to remain fully operational and will be guided by a strong group of elders and leaders of the school”.

“Our dedicated allied health team will continue to prioritise the safety and wellbeing of our students above all else,” the statement said.

“Our staff will remain focused on providing a secure, safe and nurturing environment for every child at Yipirinya School.”

The Association of Independent Schools of the Northern Territory executive director Cheryl Slater earlier on Friday afternoon echoed those initial sentiments by the school, and only confirmed that the school council had convened on the issue.

She said “in due course communicate the details of the measures taken concerning the principal’s role when it considers it the right time for the school community to do so”.

Originally published as Yipirinya School principal Gavin Morris stood down on full pay after alleged assault charges laid