Rationale:
Illegal drug use in schools is a social, health and legal problem that needs to be addressed in accordance with protocols established between the Department of Education and Training and the Victorian Police Force.
Aim:
To provide a school environment that is free of illicit drugs, and safe for all staff and students.
Implementation:
As educators we have a legal responsibility to take reasonable measures to protect students in our care from risks of injury that we should have reasonably foreseen, including risks associated with illicit drugs.
Our school does not accept that any student or staff member use, possess, supply or be under the influence of illicit drugs at school, at a school function or in the vicinity of the school or its students.
Legal issues related to illicit drug use and a school’s duty of care to its students are complex. The primary reference for issues relating to illicit drug use in schools is Drugs, Legal Issues and Schools – A Guide for Principals of Government Schools – June 2000 edition.
It is incumbent upon a school to act whenever cases of drug use or illegal or criminal activity occur, or are suspected to have occurred at school. Such action must involve staff members informing the principal who will contact the police as per the ‘Protocol between the Victorian Police and Department of Education Concerning Criminal Offences’ – 4.6.7 SOTF Reference Guide, contact parents, arrange counselling or support as necessary, and thereafter following the school’s Student Code of Conduct.
Whether or not the principal informs all parents or students of incidents involving drugs at school is a matter of circumstances and degree, but the principal’s legal duty is to ensure that the school environment is, as far as practicable, safe and free from risks.
The principal will consult with school council in matters involving significant drug use.
Evaluation:
This policy will be reviewed annually as part of the school’s three-year review cycle.
This policy was last ratified by School Council in.... November 2008
