South Australian Numbered Acts

EDUCATION AND CHILDREN'S SERVICES ACT 2019 (NO 19 OF 2019) - SECT 71

71—Chief Executive may convene family conference

        (1)         If the Chief Executive is of the opinion that—

            (a)         a student—

                  (i)         is a child of compulsory school age and is regularly absent from the school in which they are enrolled; or

                  (ii)         is a child of compulsory education age and regularly fails to participate in the approved learning program in which they are enrolled; and

            (b)         arrangements should be made to attempt to improve their attendance or participation; and

            (c)         it would be appropriate in all of the circumstances to make those arrangements by means of a family conference,

then the Chief Executive may (after consulting with the principal of the school or the head of the approved learning program in which the student is enrolled) convene a family conference under this Subdivision.

        (2)         A family conference is to be conducted by a family conference coordinator (the "coordinator") nominated by the Chief Executive.

        (3)         Subject to subsection (4)

, the following people are entitled to attend a family conference convened in respect of a particular student:

            (a)         the student;

            (b)         each person who is responsible for the student;

            (c)         the principal of the school or the head of the approved learning program in which the student is enrolled (as the case requires) or a nominee of the principal or head;

            (d)         an employee of the administrative unit of the Public Service that is responsible for assisting a Minister in the administration of this Act;

            (e)         any other person (not being a legal practitioner) who the student, or a person who is responsible for the student, wishes to support them at the conference and who, in the opinion of the coordinator, would be of assistance in that role;

            (f)         any other person, or person of a class, prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this subsection,

and the coordinator may allow such other persons as the coordinator thinks appropriate to attend a conference.

        (4)         The coordinator of a family conference may exclude a person (including, to avoid doubt, the student to whom the conference relates) from attending a family conference if the coordinator is satisfied that to do so would be in the best interests of the student.