2019-05-06
The complainants’ daughter has a form of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder associated with spending her early years in an overseas orphanage. They alleged that the respondent private K-12 school failed to appropriately accommodate their daughter’s disability and that teachers unduly criticised and penalised their daughter because of behaviour associated with her disability. The complainants withdrew their daughter from the school before lodging a complaint with this Commission.
The school claimed it and its staff took all reasonable steps to accommodate the complainants’ daughter and noted that the complainants only provided the school with their daughter’s formal diagnosis a few months before withdrawing her from the school.
The complaint was resolved with an agreement that the school pay the complainants approximately $17,600 as a refund to fees for two terms, a contribution towards the costs of relocating their daughter to a different school and as a contribution to potential future costs associated with managing her disability.
Year
Discrimination type
Disability Discrimination Act
Grounds
Disability
Unlawful to contravene Disability Standards
Areas
Disability Standards
Education
Goods, services and facilities
Compensation
Amount
$17,600