EDUCATION ACT 1990 - SECT 26HA Non-attendance directions

EDUCATION ACT 1990 - SECT 26HA

26HA Non-attendance directions

(1) The Minister may, by notice in writing, direct a student not to attend school during a specified period (a
"non-attendance direction" ). A non-attendance direction may specify a particular school or schools or any school.

(2) The Minister may give a non-attendance direction to a student only if--

(a) the Minister believes on reasonable grounds that--

(i) there is a significant risk that the student will engage in serious violent conduct, or

(ii) the student supports terrorism or violent extremism, and

(b) the Minister believes on reasonable grounds that issuing the non-attendance direction is necessary to protect the health or safety of the students or staff of any school.

(3) While a non-attendance direction in relation to a student is in force, the Minister--

(a) must assess whether the attendance of the student at school constitutes a risk to the health or safety of any person (including the student), and

(b) must, if appropriate, develop strategies to eliminate or minimise that risk and to enable the student to attend school, and

(c) must, in accordance with the guidelines, develop and implement a plan to support the student while the student is not attending school under the direction.

Note : Information about students may be obtained under Division 2 for the purposes of assisting the Minister in exercising functions under this section.

(4) In subsection (2) (a) (i),
"serious violent conduct" means conduct constituting any of the following offences (regardless of whether the student cannot, or might not, be held to be criminally responsible for the conduct)--

(a) an offence involving--

(i) loss of a person's life or serious risk of loss of a person's life, or

(ii) serious physical or psychological injury to a person or serious risk of such injury to a person, or

(iii) serious damage to property in circumstances endangering the safety of any person,

(b) a serious offence of a sexual nature,

(c) an offence involving serious animal cruelty.

(5) At the end of each school year, the Minister is to publish on the Department's website the number of non-attendance directions given by the Minister during that school year.