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HOSPITAL WORKS PAGE 7
POWERHOUSE INVESTMENT Local businessman Michael Fozard has plans to turn the former SEC Headquarters adjacent to Yallourn Power Station into a community hub. FULL STORY - PAGE 9
ABUSE FURORE LATROBE Valley parents and carers are pushing for raft of recommendations to ensure the safety of children with disabilities, as hearings into the Royal Commission into Disability are underway. Voices for Special Needs group gathered in Traralgon last week to highlight serious “cover ups” around alleged safety breaches at schools and access to kids’ information. The group is pushing for the Royal Commission to recommend installing surveillance cameras in special development schools and buses. Other recommendations include developing an independent integrity authority to oversee government departments, and
to hold a state parliamentary inquiry into the education department. The Disability Royal Commission was established in 2019 in response to concerns about widespread reports of violence, neglect, abuse and exploitation of people with disabilities. Voices for Special Needs spokeswoman and Moe mum Leanne Vella cited incidents of children returning from school with “unexplained bruises” but parents could not gain further information. It comes after the Education Department had been investigating allegations of misconduct at the Latrobe Special Development School in 2020, which included manhandling students with disabilities. Ms Vella said some families had been
told to file for Freedom of Information requests into these incidents, only to have paperwork returned with redacted information. She said many of these children were non-verbal or had limited capacity to communicate, which further compounded the issue. Ms Vella, who said several local families were scheduled to speak at the Royal Commission later this year in closed-doors hearings, has been hearing similar stories from families across the state. “We began a silent protest in concern for children with disabilities as there is a culture of cover ups and we have cases and examples that are not isolated,” Ms Vella said.
“Some of the incidents we filed are serious, with serious trauma impacts on the children with disabilities and their families. “We’ve learned that when we come together we have stories needing to be told. We felt alone and thought this was just happening to us.” Nationals Member for Eastern Victoria Melina Bath said she had asked the State Education Minister Natalie Hutchins to call an independent investigation through the Commission for Children and Young People. Ms Bath said these allegations were not new and she had been raising the issue in state parliament for many years.
MILESTONE MAN
Continued on page 3
READERS HAVE THEIR SAY - LETTERS, OPINION, PAGES 26-27
Member for Gippsland pp
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