SAFE WORKPLACES: HOW TO MANAGE

PARENT OR CARER

BEHAVIOUR THAT IS

UNREASONABLE

I

2019/0002

Under ACT law it is an offence to behave in a disorderly, violent or offensive way on ACT Government premises or fail to leave the

premises if directed to do so by the principal, a person authorised by the principal or the site manager.

If there is an immediate threat, take appropriate action at once, which may include:

Contacting Police on 000 or 131 444Reporting a threat of self-harm to ACT Health on 1800 629 354

or 6205 1065; and/orLocking down the school

For further enquiries, please contact: Governance and Community Liaison Branch ACT Education DirectoratePh 02 62055 429

Feedback on this document is welcome at:www.surveymonkey.com/r/Safeworkplaces

TABLE OF CONTENTSSAFE WORKPLACES: HOW TO MANAGE PARENT OR CARERBEHAVIOUR THAT IS NOT REASONABLE 1 INTRODUCTION 1

KEEP RECORDS 1

WHAT IS UNREASONABLE BEHAVIOUR? 1

MANAGING RELATIONSHIPS AND MINIMISING THE LIKELIHOOD OFUNREASONABLE BEHAVIOUR 2

WHAT TO DO IN INSTANCES OF UNREASONABLEPARENT/CARER BEHAVIOUR 3 SCHOOL LEVEL 3

IF BEHAVIOUR CAN NOT BE MANAGEDAT THE SCHOOL LEVEL - ESCALATE EARLY 4

SUPPORTING STAFF 5

RECORDS MANAGEMENT 5

REFERENCES 5

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SAFE WORKPLACES: HOW TO MANAGE PARENT OR CARER BEHAVIOUR THAT IS UNREASONABLEINTRODUCTIONAll staff, children, parents and carers in ACT public schools are entitled to a safe learning and working environment.

No person should feel unsafe or be subjected to unacceptable or disrespectful behaviour.

School principals have a duty of care for providing a safe learning and working environment for students and staff and are supported under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 Act to put in place measures that either eliminate or reduce risksas far as is practicable to ensure staff safety.

The Code of Conduct – Working Together with your School publication identifies that parents/ carers and community members are expected to work positively in partnership with the school to:

> contribute positively to behaviour, academic and other personalised support plans that relate to their child to enhance learning outcomes

> support the well-being and conduct of their child

> support staff in maintaining a safe, secure and respectful learning environment for all students

> respect and comply with reasonable requests or directions of the principal or other members of staff

> agree to abide by the requirements for access and acceptable use of information communication technology in relation to the school.

WHAT IS UNREASONABLE BEHAVIOUR?Unreasonable persistenceThis includes persisting with issues even though they have been dealt with, refusing to accept final decisions and sending excessive amounts of correspondence.

Unreasonable demandsThis includes insisting on outcomes that are not achievable, moving goal posts or demanding to have their concerns dealt with in a particular way.

Unreasonable lack of cooperation This includes excessive or irrelevant information, being unwilling to consider other viewpoints or refusing to define issues of concern.

Unreasonable argumentsThis includes interpreting facts or policies and refusing to accept reasonable interpretations.

Unreasonable behaviorThis includes extreme anger, aggression, threats or other threatening orviolent physical conduct.

KEEP RECORDSGood record keeping will ensure transparency and accountability in any actions taken or decisions made as a consequence of their conduct. A simple timeline using a What/ Who/When format can accurately reflect actions as they transpire with a parent/carer.

Unreasonable parent/carer behaviour can be defined as any action, incident or behaviour which because of its nature or frequency compromises the health, safety and/or security of staff or students.

Unreasonable parent/carer behaviour is not limited to telephone communications or face to face interactions. It can occur over the internet or on social networking websites, in a public location or in written correspondence.

Unreasonable behaviour can be managed at the school level, with the School Operations support or with the assistance of the Education Support Office for more serious events.

MANAGING RELATIONSHIPS AND MINIMISING THE LIKELIHOOD OF UNREASONABLE BEHAVIOURThere are overarching measures we must put in place to help set expectations and manage relationships at all levels within the school environment, these include:

Strong parent/carer and community partnershipsStrong partnerships with parents/carers are essential for developing and maintaining safe and supportive learning environments for students and staff.

Interactions with parents/carers are more likely to be effective and less likely to be unreasonable when the parent/carer-school partnerships are inclusive and respectful.

Expectations of staffA key element of whole school respectful relationships is an expectation of courteous communications, especially in interactions regarding contested issues.

It is important that principals provide staff with information and developmentopportunities to improve understanding of their professional responsibilities in modelling and promoting respectful interactions

Expectations of parents/carersThe Directorate’s Code of Conduct – Working Together With Your School outlines the responsibilities of all ACT community members, including parents/carers, to conduct themselves in a respectful and responsible manner that recognises and respects the rights of others and is in compliance with the law.

Copies should be displayed in public areas of schools, and made available to parents/carers on request, or when the school feels that a parent/carer should be made aware of the Code of Conduct.

Effective complaints policy and procedures All members of the school community have a right to make a complaint or raise a concern.The Directorate has a Complaints Policy, to which parents/carers should be referred as appropriate.

Every complainant deserves to be treated with respect and have their complaint properly considered. All parties have rights, responsibilities and expectations that areconsidered in the complaint resolution process.

If parent/carer behaviour becomes unreasonable because they feel that their complaint has not been resolved at a school level, look at other options available to assist you help the parent or carer.

Schools should contact School Operations in the first instance.

If School Operations is unable to resolve the matter, then School Operations will seek advice and support from the broader Education Support Office.

When behaviours do not comply with our expectationsFrom time to time, staff may be exposed to unreasonable parent/carer behaviour. There is no single approach that will work in everyinstance, however there are strategies that will assist determine the best course of action.

If you need help in managing unreasonable parent/carer behaviour, escalate in the following order:

1. School Leader

2. Principal

3. School Operations on 6205 3313 orSchoolOperations@act.gov.au

4. Education Support Office

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WHAT TO DO IN INSTANCES OFUNREASONABLE PARENT/CARER BEHAVIOUR

SCHOOL LEVELWhen setting expectations with parents and carers, rely on and refer to the Directorate’s Code of Conduct – Working Together With Your School which outlines the responsibilities of all ACT community members, including parents/carers, to conduct themselvesin a respectful and responsible manner that recognises and respects the rights of others and is in compliance with the law.

If you experience unreasonable behaviour from a parent or carer, you must reinforce the code of conduct. This might include reminding the parent/carer that good relationships are built on mutual respect.

There is an expectation that the first step in responding to unreasonable behaviour at the school level where a teacher is unable to resolve is for the school leader to meet with the parent/carer and try to resolve any outstanding concerns. This may also need to be escalated to the Principal.

There are also strategies that can be put in place to manage interactions at the school level, which include:

> Limit phone calls to short intervals – e.g. five minutes

> Advise parent/carer in writing that they have to book an appointment through the front office should they request a meeting.

> limit the frequency and length of those meetings, as appropriate. Involve another member of staff in the meeting and take notes.

> Be clear about the arrangements for meetings. Preferably provide a copy of arrangements in writing, including time and place of meeting and who will be present (and their role), and an agenda if appropriate. Provide a copy of the meeting notes to all parties.

> Having a single contact person within the school to liaise with the family. This will ensure consistency in messaging and avoid parents having to update staff members on their situation.

> Manage their expectations early on by letting them know what can and cannot be done and the likelihood that they will achieve the outcome they are looking for.

> Consider giving them a list of reasonable outcomes that could be achieved and that they can think about.

> Make records of topics discussed and outcomes of discussions (face to face or phone calls).

> Email a copy to the parent/carer, requesting any corrections and seeking their agreement.

If the behaviour cannot be managed at a local level, seek support from the School Operations and the Education Support Office.

Principals are authorised persons for the purpose of directing a person to leave school premises. A person does not necessarily have to be trespassing or behaving in an offensive or disorderly manner before they can be directed to leave the school premises. However, it will be in circumstances where:

> they are trespassing; or

> they behave in an offensive or disorderly way on school premises

that it will be appropriate to so direct a person to leave the premises.

However, if there is an immediate threat, take appropriate action at once, which may include:

> contacting Police on 000 or 131 444

> reporting a threat of self- harm to ACT Health on 1800 629 354 or 6205 1065;and/or

> locking down the school.

IF BEHAVIOUR CAN NOT BE MANAGED AT THE SCHOOL LEVEL - ESCALATE EARLYIf Schools are unable to resolve or manage a situation at the locallevel, particularly if there has been a serious incident, escalate by contacting School Operations, who will engage with relevant areas within the Education Support Office for support and together they will coordinatea response with the school.

Incidents may include:

> physical violence;

> targeted threats towards a staff member;

> stalking behaviour online or in person;

> use of communication technologies like social media and the internet to vilify, defame, harass, intimidate or threaten;

> audio or video recording interviews of phone calls or meetings without prior consent;

> making threats of suicide or self-harm; and

> threats to damage property.

The following strategies will be considered by School Operations with the support of the ESO:1. Modifying or restricting

communication or contact with a school

The Education Support Office, in consultation with the school, may consider ways to modifyor restrict contact with a parent/ carer to protect the health and safety of school staff (and/orothers) as well as ensuring equity and fairness in the delivery of education at the school.

For example, an alternative communication arrangement can be used to restrict:

> Who a parent/carer can make contact with within the school or Education Support Office. They may be limited to dealing with one staff member.

> What the school will respond to. This may be used in situations where a parent/ carer has repeatedly raised the same complaint or issues with the school and appears to be incapable of letting go of their issues.

> When a parent/carer can make contact with the school. This could include curbing the frequency of their contact.

> Where a parent/carer can interact with school staff face-to-face. This could include limiting the locations where contact occurs, for example to meetings at Hedley Beare Centre for Teaching and Learning (HBCTL). Staff should referto the Unwelcome Visitors Handbook for further guidance about managing unwelcome visitors at the school.

> How a parent/carer can contact the school and/or how the school will respond. This could include restricting their contact to writingonly, restricting access to direct staff emails or only responding to their emails on a fixed time period, such as once a week.

The Unwelcome Visitors Handbook is a useful resource for when access to the school site needs to be restricted.

2. Using dispute resolution (mediation, conflict resolution)

In cases where parent/carer behaviour is not of an extreme or serious nature but impedesthe school in its interactions with the family, dispute resolution may be an option. Staff should contact the Families, Students, Complaints and Feedback team who may recommend disputeresolution and will assist in setting up and running processes.

Dispute resolution can assist to ensure that all parties (the school and parents/carers) feel thatthey are being listened to and understood and that their matter is being taken seriously. It can assist schools in obtaining information about the parent/carer issuesand help clarify the underlying

factors contributing to the ongoing dispute.

Dispute resolution can assist all schools to manage expectations about the types of things that can be achieved and the possible/ likely outcomes to be achieved.

3. Using legal mechanisms to deal with extreme cases of parent/carer behaviour

A legal option is an option of last resort and will beconsidered in situations where one or more members of staff have a real and genuine fearof harm by a parent/carer.

If this type of response is required, School Operations will work with Governance and Community Liaison to support schools.

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Teams who will be part of the response:

1. School Operations

2. Governance and Community Liaison

• Families, students complaints and feedback

• Legal Liaison

3. People and Performance

• Business Partners

• WHS Team

4. Occupational Violence and Complex Case Management Team

SUPPORTING STAFFStaff must be supported following incidents of significant unreasonable parent/carer behaviour.

RiskMan ReportingAny incidents where a staff member has suffered harm or injury should be reported through the Directorate’s injury management reporting process. This includes a report of the incident, or actions constituting the harm, through RiskMan.

The Directorate’s Health Safety and Wellbeing (HSW) team, can provide support to assist duty holders with their health and safety roles, responsibilities, interventions and

with practical safety advice. The HSW team can be contacted on 6207 0614 or email etdhealthandwellbeing@act.gov.au.

CounsellingStaff may benefit from ongoing or additional support through a confidential counselling service like Employee Assistance Programs (EAP). EAP is a work-based intervention program designed to improve the emotional, mental and general psychological wellbeing of all employees and their immediate family members. It aims to provide preventive andproactive interventions for the early detection, identification and/or resolution of both work and personal problems that may adversely affect performance and wellbeing. These problems and issues may include health, trauma, substance abuse, depression, anxiety and psychiatric disorders, communication problems and coping with change. School leaders should encourage colleagues andstaff to make use of EAP as appropriate.

RECORDS MANAGEMENTThe importance of record keeping Responding to unreasonable parent/carer behaviour is most effective if accurate records of interactions with the parent/carer are kept. Good record keeping will ensure transparency and accountability in any actions taken or decisions made as a consequence of their conduct. A simple timeline using a What/Who/ When format can accurately reflect actionsas they transpire with a parent/carer.

Records should never include statements of opinion about a parent/carer or speculate about what they may be thinking. They should only include statements of fact about what was said and what was observed.

Resources and templates can be found at Complaint Management - Tools.

REFERENCES

Complaints Policy

ACTPS Managing Occupational Violence Policy 2012

ACT WHS Preventing and Responding to Bullying Code of Practice 201 2

ACTPS Respect, Equity and Diversity Framewo rk

Human Rights Act 2004

Occupational Violence Management Plan and Policy

Responding to Workplace Accidents/Incidents Policy

Unwelcome Visitors Handbook

Work Health & Safety Act 2011

Work Health and Safety Regulation 201 1