MP pushes for child sex abuse inquiry in government schools

A new push by a Victorian MP could force the education department to surrender decades of records on child sex abuse by its teachers.

Justice Party MP Stuart Grimley says the state government has failed to apologise to victims of government-employed abusers. Picture: Mike Dugdale

The Victorian Department of Education would be asked to surrender decades of records on child sex abuse by its teachers under a new push for a parliamentary inquiry into the scourge.

Justice Party MP Stuart Grimley will on Wednesday announce that if re-elected in November he will move to establish an Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in Government Schools.

It comes just days after the Herald Sun revealed a fresh investigation into historical child abuse allegations at Beaumaris Primary School where a pack of known paedophiles was allegedly left free to offend in the 1970s.

Victims of government school offenders have compared the education department’s handling of complaints to that of the Catholic Church which notoriously shuffled problem priests across parishes over decades.

The inquiry would be the first major examination of the state government’s handling of abuse matters.

Justice Party MP Stuart Grimley will move to establish an Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in Government Schools if re-elected. Picture: Peter Ristevski

Multiple inquiries, including the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, have largely ignored offending in government schools.

The Victorian parliament’s 2013 report into the Handling of Child Abuse by Religious and other Non-Government Organisations did not include government organisations.

Mr Grimley, an upper house MP, would need the support of the Legislative Council to establish the inquiry.

He said the terms of reference of any inquiry would be guided by sexual abuse survivors but would likely include investigation into the Beaumaris Primary School alleged paedophile ring.

Mr Grimley said rampant abuse throughout the 1960s to late 1990s was not specific to religious institutions.

But he said the state government had failed to acknowledge or apologise to victims of government employed abusers.

“An apology costs nothing but means so much to these survivors and the victims’ families. What are we waiting for?” he said.

“Most other states have apologised. Victoria should make this commitment as a matter of urgency, to enable a healing process for victim-survivors and their families.

“We acknowledge that the state government have made significant law reform in Victoria around child safety following the royal commission.

Beaumaris Primary School has emerged as an alleged haven for paedophile teachers in the 1970s.

“However, this doesn’t exempt them from taking ownership and acknowledging the failures of consecutive stategovernments that enabled the abuse of potentially thousands of children.”

The Herald Sun revealed on Monday sex crime detectives were investigating after up to 10 complainants alleged new offending by a male teacher at a Beaumaris Primary School from 1960s and 1970s.

The teacher, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has already been jailed for child sex crimes at the school.

He was already known to have offended at his first school in the 1960s, but went on to teach for another two decades at three other schools including a school for disabled students.

Beaumaris Primary School has emerged as a haven for paedophile teachers in the 1970s with at least four known offenders now identified as working together there in the 1970s.

Sources close to the police investigation say their offending was an open secret, and multiple complaints were made about the teachers at the time.

But they have accused the Department of Education of either doing nothing, or shuffling the teachers between schools or regional education offices.