Education (Accreditation of Non-State Schools) Bill 2017

Introduced: 9/5/2017By: Hon K Jones MPStatus: PASSED with amendment

Education Children & Families Government & Elections

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Plain English Summary

Overview

This bill replaces Queensland's 2001 law on non-State school accreditation with a modernised framework. It streamlines how independent and Catholic schools become accredited, gives the Non-State Schools Accreditation Board responsibility for deciding government funding eligibility, and strengthens inspection and investigation powers.

Who it affects

Around 266,000 students and their families at 504 Queensland independent, Catholic and special-assistance schools, the governing bodies that run those schools, and the Accreditation Board that regulates them.

Key changes

Provisional accreditation is abolished; schools get a single accreditation decision and must start operating within 4 years of a nominated student-intake day
Accredited not-for-profit schools become automatically eligible for government funding, with the Board (not the Minister) making eligibility decisions
The Board gains new powers to investigate offences, and authorised persons can require help and seize evidence (up to 50 penalty units for refusing)
Governing bodies must notify the Board within 28 days when directors change and supply the new director's blue card; circumstance-change notices shorten from 14 to 7 days
Appeals against Board decisions now go to QCAT instead of the Minister, providing independent external review
Certificates of accreditation are no longer required - the Board's online register is the public record of a school's status

How this affects you

Education

•New independent or Catholic schools can open sooner because the two-step provisional accreditation process is replaced with a single decisionClauses 18-25A school can be accredited from the outset if the governing body is suitable and the Board is satisfied the school will comply with the accreditation criteria from the student-intake day.
•You can check any non-State school's current accreditation status on the Board's public online registerClauses 126-127The Board must keep a register of accredited schools and make it available for inspection, replacing the previous paper certificate system.
•Special-assistance schools that re-engage disengaged young people can operate temporarily from short-term sites without full re-accreditationClauses 47-53The Bill enables a special assistance school to provide, on a temporary basis, special assistance at a temporary site under prescribed criteria.
•Schools running for profit lose government funding for the period they were non-compliant, not just going forwardClause 93The Board can decide that government funding eligibility is to be withdrawn for a period the ground existed, supporting Ministerial debt-recovery action.

Children & Families

•Compliance checks on new schools happen within six months of opening instead of a year later, improving oversight of student welfareClause 30The Board must start an assessment at least 60 days after, and within 6 months of, the student-intake day to check compliance with accreditation criteria including student welfare processes.
•Every director of a school governing body must hold a current blue card or exemption, and the Board is told within 28 days whenever directors changeClauses 26 and 169A governing body is not suitable unless each director has a current positive notice or current positive exemption notice; governing bodies must notify within 28 days of a director commencing or ceasing.
•Directors must tell the Board within 7 days if they are convicted of an indictable offence, with penalties of up to 20 penalty units for failing to discloseClause 172The director must, within 7 days after the conviction, give the board a notice stating details of the indictable offence. Maximum penalty - 20 penalty units.
•People running an unaccredited school, or pretending a school is accredited when it isn't, can be prosecuted with fines of up to 100 penalty unitsClauses 74-76A person must not operate a school unless the school is accredited, and must not hold out a school as accredited if it is not. Maximum penalty - 100 penalty units.

Government & Elections

•Appeals against Board decisions now go to QCAT instead of the Minister, giving parents and schools independent external reviewClause 166A governing body of a school that is given, or is entitled to be given, an information notice about a decision may apply to QCAT for a review of the decision.
•Funding-eligibility decisions move from the Minister to the statutory Board, separating political decisions from regulatory onesClause 80The Board must consider the application for government funding eligibility and decide whether it is satisfied the governing body meets the government funding eligibility criteria.
•The Minister retains the power to direct the Board in the public interest but cannot interfere in individual accreditation or funding decisionsClause 123The direction cannot be about the accreditation, amendment, cancellation or amalgamation of a particular school or a decision about eligibility for government funding.

Bill Journey

Introduced9 May 2017

First Reading

Committee

Committee Report12 July 2017

Committee report tabled

Second Reading

In Detail

Third Reading

Royal Assent25 Aug 2017

Referenced Entities

Sectors Affected

Child Protection School Education Public Administration

Classified using AGIFT/ANZSIC Australian government standards

Source Documents

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Education (Accreditation of Non-State Schools) Bill 2017

Plain English Summary

Overview

Who it affects

Key changes

Bill Journey

Referenced Entities

Legislation

Organisations

Programs & Schemes

Roles & Offices

Sectors Affected

Source Documents