Assists Principals in their decision-making when dealing with family law matters that impact on school administration.
Statement of intent
Family law matters sometimes impinge on school administration. While it is the Principal's objective to avoid involving State educational institutions in family law disputes, occasionally this is unavoidable.
The Family Law Act 1975 ( the Act) provides that each parent has parental responsibility for their children's day-to-day and long-term care, welfare and development, unless this responsibility is altered by a Family Court order or registered parenting plan.
Parental responsibility is not affected by any change in the parents' relationship, for example, if parents separate or remarry. Accordingly, in the absence of a court order to the contrary, both parents are jointly responsible for matters which include, but are not limited to, the child's education (both current and future), religious and cultural upbringing and name.
Unless a court order expressly places obligations on a State educational institution, it is not binding on the State educational institution or the Department of Education and Training (the Department). Generally, the Department operates in a manner which recognises the sentiments of the court, which serves to protect and promote the best interests of the child concerned.
If parents cannot reach agreement on matters concerning the care, welfare and development of their children, the Family Court of Australia may make any of the following orders:
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Residence order stipulates the person or persons with whom a child is to live. It is important to note that residence order is different from a custody order issued by a court prior to 11 June 1996 amendments to the Family Law Act 1975. A residence order alone does not alter the sharing of parental responsibility;
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Contact order stipulates the person or persons with whom a child will have contact, and when;
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Child maintenance order provides for the financial support of a child;
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Specific issues order addresses any other aspect of parental responsibility for a child, such as schooling, medical treatment, change and/or use of a particular name, and religious education.
Under 11 June 1996 amendments to the Family Law Act 1975, residence, contact and specific issues orders replaced guardianship, custody and access orders. Parental rights, such as guardianship and custody, were replaced with parental responsibility. It is important to note that orders made prior to 11 June 1996 continue to be binding on the parents until such time that:
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a more recent order is made by the Court;
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the child turns 18 years of age, unless a court order provides for the care or welfare of the child beyond the child turning 18 years;
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the terms of the order specify that it ceases to have force after a particular time;
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the child is adopted, in which event, unless otherwise stipulated by the Family Court, parental responsibility passes to the adoptive parents.
The Family Court may also issue location and/or recovery orders which require a person to disclose the location of a child to the police and/or authorise the police to retrieve the child.
For the purposes of this policy, a parent of a child is any of the following persons:
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the child's biological mother, subject to the existence of a court order that extinguishes the mother's parental responsibility for the child;
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the child's biological father, subject to the existence of a court order that extinguishes the father's parental responsibility for the child;
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a person who exercises parental responsibility for the child, including:
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