Victorian parents should be asking this confronting question: are our children actually safe at school? A Herald Sun report exposed a disturbing surge in schoolyard violence and sexual assaults across Victoria’s state schools. Incidents of peer-to-peer violence have tripled in just three years. Between 2022 and 2024, there were at least 7,930 assaults across more than 1,100 schools—equating to roughly 17 students being attacked by their peers every single school day. This is not just a statistic. This is a crisis! We commend the Herald Sun for scrutinising the effectiveness of the Respectful Relationships Program, which was introduced to foster respect and reduce domestic violence. But the reality is hard to ignore: this program is not delivering on its promise. For years, we have warned that the Respectful Relationships program is failing to achieve its stated aim of teaching genuine respect, healthy relationships, and strong character. Instead, it has been used to promote gender ideology and identity politics; often through an activist lens.
The results now speak for themselves. Rather than reducing harmful behaviour, we are witnessing a generation of young people becoming more aggressive both in schoolyards and in the wider community. If rising violence is alarming, reports of schoolyard sexual assaults are even more disturbing. One reported case involved a Grade 3 student sexually abusing a Prep child. For any parent, this is unthinkable. It’s a nightmare no family should ever face. It raises an urgent and disturbing question: how does a child so young come to engage in such behaviour? While multiple factors may be at play, including exposure to inappropriate material online, there is one possibility that cannot be ruled out: the unintended consequences of current Sexuality and Consent Education program in schools. We have warned that this program introduces age-inappropriate and sexually explicit content to children.
According to official Department of Education resources such as Catching on Early and Catching on Later, children as young as Grade 1 are asked to label explicit genitalia, while one Grade 7 lesson includes private parts that give sexual pleasure. While children must be protected from sexual abuse, there is no question about that, there is a clear line between safeguarding and exposing. When explicit sexual content is introduced without proper parental involvement, it risks sparking curiosity that children are not developmentally ready to process, potentially leading to experimentation and harmful behaviours. This issue is a systemic failure. It is time for both the Government and the Opposition to seriously review the Respectful Relationships Program and the current Sexuality Education framework. Already, 1,850 Victorian parents have signed an ACL joint letter calling for an urgent review of these programs.
Victorian students deserve safe school environment, clear values, and education grounded in evidence, not ideology. Programs that fail to deliver measurable improvements in safety must be reassessed or replaced. If the Government and the Education Department will not act, then voters must. With a state election on the horizon, this is a moment to demand change. The safety and wellbeing of our children must be front and centre. In this Victorian election, ACL will make education a key issue!
Source: Australian Christian Lobby
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