Re: Divorced Parents (Sam)
Dear Amy,
In today’s society many marriages are ending in divorce and more often than not will involve children. Separation and divorce can be traumatic, especially when there is on-going conflict which may be the case with Sam’s parents. When the parents of a student decide they need to separate, they are faced with many difficult issues. They need to deal with the responses that they, their partner and their children have to the separation as well as practical issues demanding attention such as arrangements regarding care and schooling of the children (NSW DET, 2010). Many people find the journey to a new life, home and relationship very difficult even if the split is amicable.
At Project BEAM we know that in some circumstances separation is not amicable and that a parent is awarded sole custody of a child which can cause issues for the school and student involved. In the case of Sam it has become apparent to the school that the separation of his parents was not acrimonious and has resulted in a court order placing Sam in the full custody of his mother. This may become a concern for you being that you are Sam’s teacher. The following response has been designed not to scare you but provide you with access to documents that will make you fully aware to the extent and nature of dealing with divorced and recently separated parents.
We must make it clear that we do not believe that schools are the place to resolve family disputes. Nor should school staff be involved in such disputes (NSW DET, 2007).We at Project BEAM therefore advise you to make yourself aware and become familiar with the Departments policy on Dealing with Family Law Related Issues in Schools and TAFE NSW: Guidelines for School and Institute Staff . Access this document using the below link.
http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/media/downloads/schoolsweb/gotoschool
/familylaw/familylawguide.pdf
The Department has developed these detailed guidelines to help schools and teachers like you deal with family law related issues. The guidelines are designed to balance the obligations and responsibilities of parents with the legal obligations of the school and its staff (NSW DET, 2007). This policy provides advice for dealing with situations related to:
- Parents picking up children after school and contact/removal of
children during school hours.
- Parental access to school documents.
- Parental involvement in school activities.
- Court orders that may regulate relationships between parents and
students.
- What to do if parents deliberately breach court orders
(NSW DET, 2007)
We have directed you to this document as Sam’s father may try to have contact and you need to know what procedures to follow. In order to avoid any confusion when dealing with families subject to family or marital breakdown, principals should request that a copy of any court orders are provided, including copies of any orders varying earlier orders (NSW DET, 2007). These should be placed in Sam’s school file and his parents should be advised that these orders will only be used by the school to ensure the educational welfare interests of Sam are properly addressed (NSW DET, 2007). It must also be noted that parents have a responsibility to advise the school immediately if any change to family circumstances occur which has the potential to impact on the relationship between the school and the parents and/or students (NSW DET, 2010). If schools are not informed otherwise (e.g. copy of court order) then they will assume that both parents retain shared and equal parental responsibility for their children such as equal duties, obligations, responsibilities and opportunities in relation to matters involving their children's education at the school (NSW DET, 2010).
If a situation between Sam’s parents did escalate and sees either parent break the court order in place you may need to be aware of the schools policies and guidelines in relation to:
- Risk Management Procedures such as lockdown and lockout procedures in case of serious incidents. See How to be a Safer School: Safety and Security Directorate
http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/media/downloads/schoolsweb/
adminsupport/safetysecurity/htbass.pdf
- Occupational Health and Safety Policy (OH&S) as it outlines the requirements for ensuring a safe and healthy working and learning environment.
http://www.det.nsw.edu.au/policies/staff/oh_s/ohs_pol/
PD20040007.shtml
We at Project BEAM know that some families experience breakdown and it is essential to refer to such documents to ensure that the schools' decisions in relation to family issues will be based on what is considered to be in the best educational interests of the child. For more information visit the NSW Public Schools website using the following link.
http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/gotoschool/familylaw/index.php
Yours Sincerely,
Dear Amy,
In today’s society many marriages are ending in divorce and more often than not will involve children. Separation and divorce can be traumatic, especially when there is on-going conflict which may be the case with Sam’s parents. When the parents of a student decide they need to separate, they are faced with many difficult issues. They need to deal with the responses that they, their partner and their children have to the separation as well as practical issues demanding attention such as arrangements regarding care and schooling of the children (NSW DET, 2010). Many people find the journey to a new life, home and relationship very difficult even if the split is amicable.
At Project BEAM we know that in some circumstances separation is not amicable and that a parent is awarded sole custody of a child which can cause issues for the school and student involved. In the case of Sam it has become apparent to the school that the separation of his parents was not acrimonious and has resulted in a court order placing Sam in the full custody of his mother. This may become a concern for you being that you are Sam’s teacher. The following response has been designed not to scare you but provide you with access to documents that will make you fully aware to the extent and nature of dealing with divorced and recently separated parents.
We must make it clear that we do not believe that schools are the place to resolve family disputes. Nor should school staff be involved in such disputes (NSW DET, 2007).We at Project BEAM therefore advise you to make yourself aware and become familiar with the Departments policy on Dealing with Family Law Related Issues in Schools and TAFE NSW: Guidelines for School and Institute Staff . Access this document using the below link.
http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/media/downloads/schoolsweb/gotoschool
/familylaw/familylawguide.pdf
The Department has developed these detailed guidelines to help schools and teachers like you deal with family law related issues. The guidelines are designed to balance the obligations and responsibilities of parents with the legal obligations of the school and its staff (NSW DET, 2007). This policy provides advice for dealing with situations related to:
- Parents picking up children after school and contact/removal of
children during school hours.
- Parental access to school documents.
- Parental involvement in school activities.
- Court orders that may regulate relationships between parents and
students.
- What to do if parents deliberately breach court orders
(NSW DET, 2007)
We have directed you to this document as Sam’s father may try to have contact and you need to know what procedures to follow. In order to avoid any confusion when dealing with families subject to family or marital breakdown, principals should request that a copy of any court orders are provided, including copies of any orders varying earlier orders (NSW DET, 2007). These should be placed in Sam’s school file and his parents should be advised that these orders will only be used by the school to ensure the educational welfare interests of Sam are properly addressed (NSW DET, 2007). It must also be noted that parents have a responsibility to advise the school immediately if any change to family circumstances occur which has the potential to impact on the relationship between the school and the parents and/or students (NSW DET, 2010). If schools are not informed otherwise (e.g. copy of court order) then they will assume that both parents retain shared and equal parental responsibility for their children such as equal duties, obligations, responsibilities and opportunities in relation to matters involving their children's education at the school (NSW DET, 2010).
If a situation between Sam’s parents did escalate and sees either parent break the court order in place you may need to be aware of the schools policies and guidelines in relation to:
- Risk Management Procedures such as lockdown and lockout procedures in case of serious incidents. See How to be a Safer School: Safety and Security Directorate
http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/media/downloads/schoolsweb/
adminsupport/safetysecurity/htbass.pdf
- Occupational Health and Safety Policy (OH&S) as it outlines the requirements for ensuring a safe and healthy working and learning environment.
http://www.det.nsw.edu.au/policies/staff/oh_s/ohs_pol/
PD20040007.shtml
We at Project BEAM know that some families experience breakdown and it is essential to refer to such documents to ensure that the schools' decisions in relation to family issues will be based on what is considered to be in the best educational interests of the child. For more information visit the NSW Public Schools website using the following link.
http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/gotoschool/familylaw/index.php
Yours Sincerely,
Project BEAM
