ROYAL COMMISSION ANNOUNCES FIRST PUBLIC HEARING TO BE HELD IN ADELAIDE

Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse
February 17, 2014

http://www.childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au/royal-commission-announces-first-public-hearing-to-be-held-in-adelaide/

A public hearing will commence in Adelaide on 17 March 2014 into the responses into the responses by the Catholic Archdiocese of Adelaide and the South Australia Police to allegations of child sexual abuse at St Ann’s Special School.

Royal Commission CEO, Ms Janette Dines, says the scope and purpose of the public hearing is to inquire into:

• The circumstances in which Brian Perkins gained his position of employment at St Ann’s Special School;
• The monitoring, supervision and oversight of Brian Perkins’s activities as an employee and as a volunteer at St Ann’s Special School;
• The response of the principal and the board of St Ann’s Special School to allegations of child sexual abuse by Brian Perkins including communication with the parents of the children said to have been sexually abused;
• The response, including internal review(s), to allegations of child sexual abuse by Brian Perkins at St Ann’s Special School, by the Catholic Archdiocese of Adelaide (including the Catholic Education Office);
• The experience of the parents of those alleged to have been sexually abused by Brian Perkins at St Ann’s Special School;
• The circumstances around, and the basis for the payment of monies by the Catholic Education Office, Archdiocese of Adelaide to the parents of those alleged to have been sexually abused;
• The nature of the investigation by the South Australia Police (“SAPOL”) into the allegations of child sexual abuse by Brian Perkins at St Ann’s Special School, including the circumstances in which Brian Perkins was able to leave the State of South Australia in or about 1993 and steps taken by SAPOL to have him return to South Australia; and
•  The nature and extent of communications of the investigation and other related matters by SAPOL with the parents of those alleged to have been sexually abused.

The venue for the hearing will be Roma Mitchell Commonwealth Law Court Building, 3 Angas Street, Adelaide.

Ms Dines said, “The Royal Commission has a national focus and in the first half of 2014 there will also be public hearings in NSW, Western Australia and the ACT.”

The Royal Commission has called a public directions hearing to be held in Sydney at 9.30am on Friday, 21 February 2014. The purpose of the directions hearing is to hear from those with leave to appear about any potential of a public hearing into management of claims of child sexual abuse at St Ann’s to prejudice civil proceedings relating to St Ann’s.

The venue for the directions hearing will be Hearing Room 1, Level 17, Governor Macquarie Tower, 1 Farrer Place, Sydney.

Any person or institution who believes that they have a direct and substantial interest in the Scope and Purpose of the public hearing is invited to lodge a written application for leave to appear at the directions hearing and/or public hearing by 10am Thursday, 20 February 2014.

Applications for leave to appear should be made using the form available on the Royal Commission website entitled ‘Application for Leave to Appear at the Royal Commission’ and include a short submission setting out the basis on which it is said the applicant has a substantial and direct interest in appearing.

The form and the submission should be lodged with the Royal Commission via: Email: solicitor@childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au; or Mail: GPO Box 5283, Sydney NSW 2001

For more information on lodging your submission call 02 8282 3824 or email solicitor@childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au

The public hearing will be streamed live to the public via the webcast webpage.

Interested individuals and organisations are encouraged to view the proceedings via the webcast. For more information visit the Case Study 9 webpage.