Legal: New criminal offences for sexual acts or relationships with students
Queensland Teachers' Journal, Vol 129 No 8, 1 November 2024, page no. 23
New criminal offences have been introduced in Queensland that prohibit sexual acts or relationships involving young people aged over 16 years and under 18 who are subject to the care, supervision or authority of a teacher, deputy principal or principal.
The reforms are in response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, which identified that a significant power imbalance exists between teachers, school administrators and students.
New laws
The Queensland Parliament recently introduced two new criminal offences that apply to people in a position of power or authority over young people, including teachers, deputy principals and principals, as well as a range of other school staff including music tutors and sports coaches. The amendments provide a protective mechanism for young people at their school who are over the age of consent (16 years of age) but under 18.
The new laws include a new “position of authority offence” and expand the previous offence of “maintaining an unlawful sexual relationship with a child” to include young people aged 16 or 17, who are under the care, supervision, or authority of a teacher, deputy principal or principal. The new offences will commence soon on a date yet to be announced by the Queensland Government.
Position of authority offence
The new position of authority offence criminalises a range of sexual acts in the Queensland Criminal Code that may be committed by an adult with a young person aged 16 or 17 under their care, supervision, or authority. Several categories of people are captured by the new law, including teachers, deputy principals or principals. Other categories include parents, their spouses and guardians, health practitioners, and other caregivers.
Under the new laws, it is not necessary to establish that an abuse or exercise of authority actually took place, or that there was an absence of consent. The relevant question for a prosecution is whether the complainant was under the care, supervision, and authority at the time of the act or acts, and their age.
Maintaining a relationship with a child over 16
The new laws have also made it a crime for an adult to maintain an unlawful sexual relationship with a young person aged 16 or over who is under their care, supervision, and authority. Previously it was only a criminal offence for an adult to maintain an unlawful sexual relationship with a child under the age of 16.
Who does this apply to?
A teacher, principal or deputy principal are considered to have children under their “care, supervision or authority”. The relationship can be a standing one or on an ad hoc basis.
Defences
Certain legal defences may be available if a person believed on reasonable grounds that the young person was at least 18 years of age, the accused person is less than three years older than the child, or they were lawfully married. However, these defences are explicitly not available to teachers, principals, and deputy principals under the new laws.
Impacts on professional registration
These two new offences have also been added to the list of serious offences and disqualifying offences for teachers for the purposes of Queensland College of Teachers registration and Blue Cards.
Key takeaways
There is no doubt teachers and school leaders serve as fantastic mentors and role models in the lives of young people. But they also have inherent power and authority over young people. With that considerable power to determine academic outcomes, grant extracurricular opportunities and discipline young people, comes great responsibility to do the right thing, at all times.
Addressing the risk of child sexual abuse remains a critical priority for teachers, school administrators and school communities as a whole. All educators have to do their part to reduce the risk or even the perception of risk that inappropriate relationships can or have developed with a student.
The changes in law are a clear reminder for teachers and school administrators of the significant risk that exists in this space. Maintaining clear boundaries at all times, and ensuring you develop healthy and appropriate relationships with students is a crucial step to avoiding risk in this space and protecting your professional reputation.