The West Australian
Department using School Sport WA ‘as a scapegoat’
The head of School Sport WA claims the Education Department is using it as a scapegoat to bolster its decision to take over management of all student sporting competitions.
The organisation — under different names — has handled interschool and interstate competitions across multiple sports for more than a century.
But the department has signalled it will take over all school events from next year, in the wake of an investigation into allegations of credit card misuse by three of its employees involved with School Sport WA.
President Peter Rickers said he believed the department had used its investigation into suspected misconduct as an excuse to strip School Sport WA of its long-held role. Mr Rickers understood the three staff members had now returned to work, but he believed the way they had been treated was “deplorable”.
“We’ve had an investigation that started in October and has only just finished,” he said.
As The West revealed on Tuesday, the department said its decision to take over School Sport WA’s role was sparked by the investigation.
Deputy director-general Steve Watson said the probe had highlighted the need to move to a new model of delivery with “clearer governance, roles and responsibilities to manage risks”.
Mr Rickers said the announcement of the changes had sparked an “existential crisis” for the organisation, which had served schools for decades.
“As of December 31, our formal contract finishes,” he said. “We’re in a situation where at no fault of School Sport WA, we have been a casualty of this investigation.”
He stressed that School Sport WA had strong safeguards and had met all its financial responsibilities with the department.
Mr Rickers estimated it would have cost the department about $450,000 to replace the staff who had been stood down on full pay for nearly a year.
