Tuesday, 25 August 2026

 Melina BATH (Eastern Victoria) (22:28): (2729) The adjournment matter I have is for the attention of the Premier, and the action I seek is for the Premier to meet with representatives of Voices for Special Needs and affected Latrobe Valley families, with a view to establishing an independent review of historical child safety complaints and concerns involving Victorian specialist schools and how they were handled. In July, only a month ago, in this Parliament the Premier apologised to victims and survivors of child sexual abuse in Victorian government schools. The Premier said:

We failed to protect you. We failed to listen when you tried to disclose or explain what was done to you.

He went on:

For too long, silence protected perpetrators and institutions instead of children.

Those words resonated deeply with a number of families in Latrobe Valley who have spent years seeking answers about safety concerns involving students with disability. Many of the children at the centre of those concerns were among the most vulnerable in our education system. Many were non-verbal. Many relied on parents and carers to advocate for their safety and wellbeing. Importantly, families are not asking the government to prejudge allegations. They are asking for the truth. They want to know whether concerns raised over many years were properly investigated, whether complaints were handled appropriately and whether vulnerable children received the protection that they were entitled to. They want transparency. If mistakes were made, concerns were overlooked or systems failed these vulnerable children, those failures should be identified and addressed.

Voices for Special Needs have raised these concerns, and I in this place over many years have called for action, have called for referrals to the Commission for Children and Young People and have asked them to speak at education inquiries, and yet these good families still feel that they are overlooked, unheard and not taken seriously by this government for what they feel so aggrieved about. Premier, your apology recognises that people affected by abuse have the right to be heard and treated with dignity and respect. The principle should extend to those families with children with disability who cannot speak for themselves. Therefore I ask you to meet with Voices for Special Needs and the affected families in Latrobe Valley and seek to establish an independent review of these processes. These families seek truth, accountability and confidence that every child attending a Victorian specialist school is safe, respected and protected.