The following Royal Commissions are relevant to the work of the Department for Education.

Child Protection Systems Royal Commission

The Child Protection Systems Royal Commission, headed by Justice Margaret Nyland, was established in August 2014.

The Royal Commission presented its final report (PDF 15.6MB) to the Governor of South Australia on 5 August 2016.

More information

Visit the Department for Child Protection's website for more information.

Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse

The Australian Government established the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse to investigate how institutions like schools, churches, sports clubs and government organisations have responded to allegations and instances of child sexual abuse across Australia.

The Royal Commission presented its final report in December 2017 which highlighted serious failings in the way institutions protect children and young people and deal with reports of abuse when they occur. The Royal Commission delivered 409 recommendations, of which 256 are for the Government of South Australia and 22.5 for the Department for Education to action.

The Australian Government and the Government of South Australia released their responses to this report in June 2018.

On 5 December 2019 the Government of South Australia released its second annual progress report on the Royal Commission. Highlights of the department’s progress include:

• Commencing a review of the Teachers Registration and Standards Act 2004 to consider improving how information about teachers, relevant to child safety, is shared between the Teachers Registration Board of South Australia and other authorities.
• Supporting the passage of the Education and Children’s Services Act 2019 through Parliament. The Act explicitly permits information sharing about the education, health, safety and wellbeing of children and young people in South Australian schools, preschools and children’s services.
• Updated guidelines on responding to problem sexual behaviour in children and young people to include additional content about online safety.

The department will continue to progress its recommendations in 2020 and beyond.

More information

Visit the Department for Child Protection's website for more information.