CCTV Cameras

You would be aware from a previous newsletter (Issue 5) that CCTV has been installed across our site. The CCTV supply and installation was the result of a grant given to us by the Department of Education and Training. 

This has proven to be very timely considering the large amount of vandalism that has occurred over the past month. Relevant CCTV footage has been passed on to the police and we are hopeful that the perpetrators will be identified and charged.

Schools have an obligation to ensure the school environment is safe and secure, and fulfil the duty of care to students, staff and visitors. The CCTV system exists to assist our school to fulfil these obligations and to prevent and manage other inappropriate behaviour on school grounds. CCTV strengthens our school’s security by providing an appropriate level of awareness of activities on school grounds and assists our school to take all reasonable steps to prevent reasonably foreseeable harm on school premises (duty of care). 

The existing cameras monitor the main public areas of the school. The purpose of the system is to enable our students and staff to feel safe at all times. The cameras record images all the time, but the display screens are not routinely monitored. The monitoring screens are in a secure area of the school and only the principal (or their delegate) and the IT technician can access the footage.

As a result of the installation of the CCTV, we have developed a new school policy which applies to the installation of CCTV cameras on school grounds and the use and disclosure of any footage produced by those cameras.

The policy is consistent with:

• Victorian government Schools’ Privacy Policy (applies to all Victorian government schools);
• the Department’s Crime Prevention in Schoolspolicy;
• Victorian privacy law.

It has been developed in collaboration with DET Legal Division, the DET Policy and Advisory Branch and the Security and Emergency Management Division, and approved by all.

Please head to our website if you wish to view the policy.