BBC's parent concerns - child safety
As a parent at BBC it’s been quite a ride since we discovered that all may not be well in the body that governs our schools – the Presbyterian and Methodist Schools Association (PMSA).
Relatively new to the community, we are fervently proud and beyond excited to be enjoying the amazing teachers, phenomenal facilities and divine peers with whom our children delight in friendship each day. It is also never lost on us how educated, clever, financially resourceful and passionate the parents who choose to send their children to these environments are. PMSA schools, who are made of these humans, are amazing.
So it has been something of a grief process to learn about the disappointing things the that the PMSA have done (or failed to do) in recent months, and to experience in real-time the abandoning vacuum of communications coming from our teachers and Principal at exactly the time that we need to be embraced, assured and bought together.
My first reaction to the Courier Mail reports were shock (this is outrageous and embarrassing trash unbecoming of our schools)…….
…… followed by disbelief (it must be a beat up – girl’s school politics – power brokers embarrassingly playing their private stuff out in public – there can’t be anything substantial behind it)…..
….. and I’ve even gone through some denial (there are plenty of guys who have silly text conversations with one another, I “may” have been to that bathhouse myself way back when, everyone keeps their old work files when they move jobs)…….
…….. but as the BeyondPMSA group have progressively found more and more impressively experienced people who have had access to, seen, shared and reported acts that can only be described as gross failures of governance to the CMC, CCC, ACNC, NSABB, Police, Minister for Education, Premier and Churches. I now have more squarely moved to anger!
- How dare they vegemite my $50K/y across schools who are struggling financially without my knowledge.
- How dare they plan a corporate services consolidation and implement an executive leadership replacement scheme without any consultation, and
- HOW DARE they gag my school leaders and my kids teachers through a culture of fear on matters that relate to student safety!
In the last two weeks, I have mainly moved to acceptance – acceptance that action must be taken.
To fail to take action will be to condone the evident failings of this broken system of governance. To fail to be part of the change will be to allow the under-belly, the sinister and the potentially dangerous aspects of what has been present in our schools for a very long time to continue, and to ensure that in actual fact, they cannot be the very best they could be.
Part of the challenge in engaging all parents properly in this discussion is the inevitable discomfort involved in acknowledging the reasons that we need to fight for change.
It is easier to accept the narrative that “it has always been like this and the schools have been excellent in spite of it”. That “my girls/boys are happy and that’s all I really care about”.
It is easier not to feel the incongruence that there are in fact many children, parents and staff, over many decades, who would not agree that they were heard and kept safe when they appropriately called out serious concerns or asked for help from their school. It is easier just to be proud of our “elite brands” and look the other way when we hear about the ugly bits.
It is easier. I guess. Until the family that needs good governance, is yours.
So what is good governance?
Whether we look to the Australian Institute of Company Directors, ProBono, the Governance Institute or other credible commentators on contemporary governance in Not-for-Profits, there are some key themes that emerge in what constitutes good practice.
There would be few people who send their children to a PMSA school who do not understand and experience the key concepts of contemporary governance practices in their workplaces and their own businesses.
The expectations of all commercial entities – whether they are not-for-profit or listed on the ASX have been bought under even increasing levels of scrutiny by regulators and shareholders who rightly demand high performance and right conduct in all sectors.
In 2017, in the setting of our faith based, not-for-profit schools, it is entirely reasonable that we expect PMSA to demonstrate:
Through the issues that have come to light through the media over the last few weeks, it seems we’ve collectively become aware of a number of shortcomings in our school governance. As an individual I half wish I hadn’t read what I’ve now read.
We would not tolerate these shortcomings at work – and we should not tolerate them in the organisations we entrust our children and our significant financial investments to.
We must call on the Churches to work with us to achieve change.
We all, especially our children, deserve better.
