Dear Victorian Department of Education and Training,

Please provide me with documentation described in the Subject line above: Incident report, staff notes, reports and principal emails, notes and reports about a self-harm allegation from Wantirna South Primary School from 21 October 2022.

Allegations of self-harm (choking behaviour while distressed during class time) were made about my 10 year old daughter on 21 October 2022. No information about this allegation, which was alleged to have been witnessed during class time on this Friday, has been provided to me. There is apparently no incident report, no protective measures were taken, no evidence, information, communication, notification or reports were shared with her parents and no protective measures were taken when sending her to her father's place for the weekend. Neither her father nor I were made aware of any of this alleged incident.

The principal of the school, Kerri Emondson, claims she was not "aware" of this allegation until the following Monday 24 October, at which point she alleges she made contact with Child Protection, Eastern Region at around 9-9.30am. She alleges that Child Protection arrived at Wantirna South Primary School around 10-10.30am and removed my 10 year old daughter from class, still without knowledge of any incident, or any permission to interview our child, to interrogate her on a range of subjects apart from any allegations of self-harm. She strenuously denies any such behaviour took place. However, this left an allegedly 'self-harming' 10 year old girl to her own devices for 60 or so hours as the school sent her home without informing anyone of the 'incident'.

The first I was aware of any of this was on Monday around 11-11:30am when two Child Protection Practioners arrived at my doorstep while I was working my normal 40-hour week from home, and proceeded to interrogate me about a range of child protective concerns, including the alleged self-harm incident. This is the first time I was aware of any concerns about my daughter.

I want all and any relevant documentation about this incident provided to me urgently.

Kerri Emonson has refused to cooperate in providing information about this alleged incident, refused to discuss who observed and reported this alleged self-harm, has refused to follow up with my daughter's welfare - as she had promised - and will no longer communicate with me about this incident.

In the meantime, a number of children have been identified as having been sexually assaulted by a 10-year-old male student at the school, including my daughter. Kerri Emonson has told some mothers who have voiced their concerns about this that she has had no knowledge of these incidents, while telling at least one parent that she is "well aware" of the sexual assaults by this child and that SOCIT has previously been involved.

Yet, she has worked to convince female students who have complained about these assaults that they couldn't possibly have taken place, and they must be mistaken/made up these incidents.

Please help me with this. I have followed all the due process making complaints and begging for help, but at the Ombudsman level, I am still none the wiser.

Girls at the school are scared and have learned to not disclose sexual assault to teachers or the principal because nothing is done about it.

Please contact me for more information, correspondence between myself and the levels of complaint within the DET with NO RESPONSE, NO EVIDENCE RELATED TO THE SELF-HARM INCIDENT, NO HELP, NO ADHERENCE TO DET FRAMEWORKS, AND NO ACTION TAKEN TO PROTECT CHILDREN.

Finally, I have been told bluntly by Kerri Emonson that if I wish to see documentation about the alleged 'self-harm' incident made against my daughter, she could not communicate with me without legal advice (no communication since) and that I would have to make an FOI request because she would not assist me.

Yours faithfully,
JA

Dear FOI Unit,
I have already requested this documentation from the school, as described in my initial email.
My request from the school was refused, as described in my initial email. I was told I would have to get it through FOI, hence my email to you.
Please direct me to the payment method and continue with providing the information requested.
Yours sincerely,

Jax Andrusiak