Simone Russell's fake injury

As readers of this blog would know, Simone Russell has been off work for most of this year, first claiming stress as a result of postings on this blog and then due to a neck strain she claims to have gotten at work.

Staff at the school are well aware that the true reason Simone doesn't want to work is because she is a racist who has been paired with a lady of African heritage. She doesn't want to have to work with Mrs Okello because she thinks she is too good to work underneath a "black woman."

This is a fact which is well known to Neil Moon, Peter Harvey and Carole McDiarmid, yet she can continue to get away with it. If it was anyone else they would be told to tough it out or walk out the door.

A more recent reason for Simone's fraud is because she has been planning her daughter's 21st birthday, which was held on the weekend. Unfortunately for Simone, it appeared in the Western Advocate on page 10 today where she can be seen leaning her neck slightly to the side, which would hurt her already injured neck.

It is obvious that Simone Russell is milking the system dry and should be sacked. If Neil Moon and Peter Harvey don't have the manhood to do it, they too should be charged with supporting her fraudulent claims.

Image from Western Advocate online, used under Fair Use provisions.

The 'axis of evil'

For years many of us in the department have known just how malignant and rotten the Department of Education and Training is in the Bathurst district. Appointments are not based on merit and the focus is on stabbing whomever you need in the back to get ahead. This has been proudly supported by our Queen, Regional Director Carole McDiarmid.

You see Carole is a Bathurst girl herself. She worked as superintendent (the name that the SED was formerly given) in Bathurst before being promoted to superintendent in Orange and now to Regional Director based in Dubbo. Her roots remain firmly planted in Bathurst and her alliances here also.

Unfortunately for Carole she has a number of skeletons in her closet from her time here in Bathurst. She is renowned for being incompetent and corrupt. She is known to make life hard for any person who disagrees with her and will bend the system to her advantage. Countless teachers have been 'Healthquested' at her insistence after they spoke out about her friends or dared to question the Queen herself.

At Carenne of course, the Queen isn't the only problem. The real 'axis of evil' involves Peter Harvey and Neil Moon. The two weaklings along with the Queen will do anything they can to protect themselves. They know if one falls they all fall, this is why Lynette Duncan, a highly capable executive in the department was made out to be 'mentally ill' after her demise. When it became apparent that Lynette was a liability, Queen Carole ordered for her to be beheaded by the KLAN at Carenne.

You might think that the KLAN is something that was fostered, encouraged and even created by Jock Roxborough during his time as principal but don't fool yourself, the KLAN was something actively supported by Queen Carole. Most schools across the Bathurst district have a KLAN or 'cabal' as we call them at district office with their own 'code of omerta'. In most schools it isn't as visible as Carenne but I can assure you, they are still there.

Carenne presentation day a farce

According to parents and staff, Carenne Special School's presentation day held at the Bathurst Memorial Entertainment Centre was a complete farce, with key Carenne supporters missing from the event. Despite ordinarily attending presentation day, Peter Harvey and Carole McDiarmid were absent from the event. Key Carenne Support personnel were also missing from the event.

As expected, the principal of the school publicly named and shamed for lying to the media, Neil Moon spun how good the school was and how it was one of the few special schools being heavily invested in by the government. One parent said "It was supposed to be a celebration of the students not some spin session, with Neil Moon raving on like a lunatic about how great the staff and school are."

According to the Carenne Saviours, the event was poor compared to previous years. "Neil Moon really showed how utterly incompetent he is with it being the worst presentation day I have been to. It was a absolute joke," said Barracus.

"What made me laugh was half the organisations giving awards didn't even turn up to present them, how do we even know it was them that gave them out? Nobody showed, people don't want to be associated with the school," said nedkelly.

Another Carenne Saviour said "You could tell that it was organised by Louise Smith and Simone Russell, it was a joke, it was the worst presentation day ever."

One parent told Carenne Gate "I was sickened by the day today, it was completely degrading of the students, it was terrible. I couldn't believe the behaviour of some of the staff, they showed just how incompetent the school was."

Bathurst West principal steals stroller donated to fire victims

Following a tragic house fire in Bathurst a few weeks ago where a young child lost their life, Bathurst West Public School ran an appeal for parents to donate items to help the family to get back on to their feet.

According to staff of the school, a stroller which was of high-quality and in excellent condition was donated to the family but was removed by principal Toni MacDonald who took the stroller home, presumably for her own friends and family. Mrs MacDonald's greed deprived a family who has just lost everything the stroller.

The incident highlights the truly malignant state of the school system in the Bathurst district and shows that while Carenne Special School may have some of the most serious issues in the district, other schools have problems as well which points to poor leadership by Peter Harvey and Carole McDiarmid.

DET ignored its duty of care over allegations against Churches: SEA Snitch

SEA Snitch, a whistleblower in the department's district office in Bathurst, from where School Education Director Peter Harvey is based claims that the department deliberately neglected its duty of care surrounding allegations made against Lee Churches.

SEA Snitch claims that towards the middle of 2009 a letter was received by Peter Harvey with photographs of Drew Churches and another young male drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes at the Churches family home and engaging in high-risk activities such as showing off on an abandoned building in Bathurst. SEA Snitch claims these are similar to the ones leaked to Sydney Indymedia by a Carenne Special School staff member in October last year. SEA Snitch says that the photographs were date stamped 2008, at which time Drew would have been just 15.

SEA Snitch told Carenne Gate that the department had a duty to investigate Lee for child abuse and neglect even though the allegations involved her own son. He claims that Lynette Duncan was also aware of the allegations and deliberately hid them from the Employee Performance and Conduct division of the department.

SEA Snitch said:

"What should have happened is that Lee should have been stood down pending investigation, the investigation would have been swift given the photographic evidence and she should have then been sacked. It shows that there is a history of child neglect even with her own son and she is unfit to teach."

SEA Snitch alleges that Ms Churches has received special treatment from Peter Harvey and Carole McDiarmid who are protecting her. He also claims that both are aware that she is "carennetruth" and a plethora of other aliases on this blog.

Carenne principal not properly trained

The Carenne Saviours have expressed concern at Neil Moon not being trained in crisis intervention techniques, for which he is going to Sydney for next week. The Saviours claim that it is completely unacceptable that a principal of a special school not be trained properly, particularly when Mr Moon was the principal of Holman Place School in Cowra before arriving at Carenne.

One saviour told Carenne Gate -

"It's not like Lynn Duncan who didn't come from a position at another special school, you could understand it, this man was the principal of another special school and isn't properly trained."

"No wonder this guy thinks it's OK to sit on students, something Terry Neal started last year, he isn't even trained!" said another.

When the principal of a school isn't appropriately trained and is only sent for training in July of the year that he started it shows there are serious problems with the special education system, particularly when he was the principal of another special school for years beforehand. It shows the continuing incompetence of Carole McDiarmid and her Western NSW staff.

Victimisation against staff who speak out emerges in other Western Region Schools

Allegations that staff who speak out against the Department of Education and Training in the Western Region of NSW are victimised having done so have emerged following incidents at Kelso Public School, West Bathurst Public School and Dubbo College. They claim that those close to regional director Carole McDiarmid are responsible for the victimisation.

Staff at West Bathurst Public School were told they face possible disciplinary action if they speak out about a number of serious issues at that school.

At Dubbo College, the NSW Teacher's Federation claimed that there was a better chance of being listened to rather than being dismissed as a group of people who were complaining for the sake of complaining when the minister became involved than when they were dealing with senior DET officials. As with the Carenne Special School, those who speak out against the department at Dubbo College must remain anonymous to avoid retribution from senior DET officials.

It appears there are very serious problems with the Western Region DET.

Parents claim Carole McDiarmid "spun" at presentation day

Parents claim that the Carenne Special School was a DET star attraction today with Carole McDiarmid, Peter Harvey and Gerard Martin in attendance. Parents say that a speech by Carole McDiarmid attempting to rally support from Carenne parents and friends sounded like an attempted cover-up.

During her speech she spoke about the "infamous website" and claimed that "everything on it is just rot". She said that Carenne was a great school and needed everyone's support as it was going through a difficult time.

Parents also complained about the P&C raffle results, when Scott Russell won second place. Parents say that Simone Russell is on the P&C committee and her family should not have entered. They claim awards given to students were equally slanted towards family and close supporters.

Grant Marley of the Misconduct Unit, this person is getting info direct from Carole McDiarmid for publication on Sydney Indy

Posted October 25th, 2009 by ∆ on Sydney Indymedia

Only Regional Office would know that a suppression order was applied for and granted by a teacher who was targeted by Bathurst Regional Office and subjected to corrupt behaviour by them. The general public and even principals of schools would not have received that information. Proceedings of the ADT are not publicised in any newspaper.

This person 'defendthetruth' has received information within the last 24 hours from Carole McDiarmid herself, the only person who would have been contacted regarding the application for a suppression order since she was the Regional Director at the time and since she was a witness in the case. She would have been contacted by the court and asked if she wanted to have any input into the suppression application.

So Mr Marley, what are you going to do about THAT? Your Regional Director of Education is supplying information for publication on Sydney Indymedia.

I have been told a very serious complaint has been made relating to those court proceedings, a complaint accompanied by irrefutable documentation that perjury was committed during that court case and that lies were placed on this victim's employee file by Janice Anderson under instructions from Carole McDiarmid. Both McDiarmid and Anderson gave evidence during the case, as well as former principals Graeme Viles and George Peacock.

The government medical officer was sacked last year over his involvement relating to this matter, after the former Deputy Police Commissioner was brought in to examine some aspects of the case.

Grant Marley, if you really are an 'investigator' into serious misconduct and not just another lackey who is there to cover up for senior officials of the State Labor Government which is what is strongly suspected, I would suggest you save time by getting the report written by David Madden, the former Deputy Police Commissioner, because I am told that the whistleblower didn't just give information about Dr Peter Dodwell, the person also gave David Madden all the information about Carole McDiarmid and Janice Anderson of Bathurst Regional Office as well, because what Dodwell did in denying the person a job was directly related to the lies placed on the person's employment file all those years ago. Dodwell quoted from these lies when writing referrals. In a way, Dodwell was not entirely responsible for the mess he got himself into with this matter. I often wonder why he won't come forward and tell his story of how he was pressured by the DET in Bathurst to prevent the person from working. When the person was interviewed, everything was recorded, so you don't even have to interview this person, David Madden already has.

The victim of all this has told me he/she has protection from being dismissed via a letter from you, the Serious Misconduct Unit, stating that the person has made a protected disclosure.

PROTECTED DISCLOSURES ACT 1994 - SECT 19

Disclosure to a member of Parliament or journalist

19 Disclosure to a member of Parliament or journalist

(1) A disclosure by a public official to a member of Parliament, or to a journalist, is protected by this Act if the following subsections apply.

(2) The public official making the disclosure must have already made substantially the same disclosure to an investigating authority, public authority or officer of a public authority in accordance with another provision of this Part.

(3) The investigating authority, public authority or officer to whom the disclosure was made or, if the matter was referred, the investigating authority, public authority or officer to whom the matter was referred:

(a) must have decided not to investigate the matter, or

(b) must have decided to investigate the matter but not completed the investigation within 6 months of the original disclosure being made, or

(c) must have investigated the matter but not recommended the taking of any action in respect of the matter, or

(d) must have failed to notify the person making the disclosure, within 6 months of the disclosure being made, of whether or not the matter is to be investigated.

(4) The public official must have reasonable grounds for believing that the disclosure is substantially true.

(5) The disclosure must be substantially true.

Protest Comes to Bathurst: Department of Education and Training Targeted

Posted November 10th, 2009 by ∆ on Sydney Indymedia

On Monday 10^th November 2009 a well-attended and successful protest was held in Bathurst.

Following concerns raised by parents and staff of possible mistreatment of disabled children at Carenne school, misappropriation of and misuse of a donated bus, the unfair dismissal of a worker, bullying of staff and parents by a member of the executive staff at the school and general corruption and malfeasance issues at the Western Region headquarters of the Department of Education and Training in Bathurst which is headed by Carole McDiarmid, a group of concerned citizens met in Bathurst, some coming from as far away as Sydney and the North Coast.

Protests were held at several different sites throughout the town for maximum impact. In some cases interested citizens of Bathurst came and stood with the protesters in solidarity. Many people took the flyers which outlined our concerns and which promoted Sydney Indymedia as an alternative news outlet.

First port of call was the Bathurst War Memorial Park where protesters met to discuss plans and strategies. At this point Edward James was soon surrounded by a swarm of Federal Police who were relieved to learn he was not there to protest against Kevin Rudd. They advised that it would be fine for us to protest on the footpath as long as we kept away from the roped-off area where (alleged) dignitaries were to enter the Civic Chambers with a view to upward social mobility, no doubt.

It was decided to start opposite the park, outside the Court House which was next to the Bathurst Council Chambers where Kevin Rudd was a guest.

As luck would have it, it was a busy day in Bathurst, with many news crews on the footpath where we set up our signs either to cover a fraud case being heard, or the Kevin Rudd visit. All were keen to hear our story and Edward James, the spokesperson, spoke on camera about the purpose of our protest and about the lack of proper representation for the people of N.S.W.

While some protesters held up signs, others handed out flyers, which pointed out that the Western Region’s Director of Education was awarded the Public Service Medal while still under investigation by the Serious Misconduct Unit. The flyers also gave the URL for Sydney Indymedia, so it was great to be able to promote the site as well.

A 4WD, decorated with protest signs and streamers was parked outside the courthouse with the CD player belting out Pink Floyd’s Another Brick in the Wall. This vehicle toured the town throughout the day, stopping so that more flyers could be handed out and onlookers informed of the reason for our concern.

The media, gathered for the arrival of Kevin Rudd as well as the court hearing, took photos.

Next the protesters moved camp to the Regional Office of the Department of Education and Training. With Pink Floyd playing somewhat loudly and signs held up, we protested against those who should be looking into the problems at Carenne School and putting a stop to the bullying of staff, parents and students that is alleged to be occurring.

Flyers were again handed out to passers-by and to drivers of cars which stopped, who inquired why we were protesting.

It is believed Carole McDiarmid gave the order for police to be called, even though we have a right to protest under the law of N.S.W. The DET wanted us moved on. All up, seven police cars arrived in the next half hour, more to have a look than to cause any problems for us. There was a 4WD as well as marked and unmarked cars. Some stopped and some cruised past for a look. Edward James spoke at length to police on the footpath, explaining the reason for concern about the Bathurst Regional Office of the D.E.T.

Some protesters wore disguises at this venue, fearing reprisals if they were identified. Photos were taken of the protesters from inside the building.

Police suggested the music be toned down a little but not turned off. They then went inside DET headquarters to report that we were not breaking the law and would be permitted to remain where we were.

This was a considerable victory after a member of Carenne executive staff threatened to use police to harass us and move us on, stating in a comment on Sydney Indymedia “I will have the police waiting for you.” The same Carenne staff member has today told people that there were ‘arrests’ at the protest. There were no arrests. It has been said that in the past, police in the Bathurst-Lithgow region have been used by the Department of Education to harass people they have unjustly dismissed or other whistleblowers. Protesters on this occasion found the police to be polite and non-threatening.

Edward James adds: "A Police inspector was informed in passing that it was believed
a serving police officer related to a employee of Carenne, had
accessed the police computer to "check out" people posting news items
under their own names on Indymedia. That information was believed
to have been passed on illegally to Department of Education employees.
Reports that arrests were made on Monday should be accorded the
same level of credibility that Carennestrewth enjoys. There were no arrests.
Public Trust Journalists posting on Sydney IndyMedia believe that all police
we had dealings with on Monday 9 of November were professional and the
way they conducted themslves indicates to us visiting Bathurst with our
political concerns that there is an opening for informed change."

Next stop was the office of the Bathurst rag, the Western Advocate, which seems to think it has a monopoly on reporting of events in Bathurst. No more, guys - you have a rival in Sydney Indy. Protesters stood on the footpath while the protest vehicle cruised the street playing "Another Brick in the Wall", stopping outside the Western Advocate Building at times. Some protesters went inside the building to speak to reporters regarding their 'warm fuzzy stories' about Carenne school, failing to address the very serious issues there, as well as happy pictures of Western Regional Director Carole McDiarmid, who should be working towards fixing the problems at Carenne rather than socializing with the known workplace bully.

Lastly we went to the N.S.W. government offices where Edward James delivered a flyer and a message to Gerard Martin regarding his inaction on the problems at Carenne School and within the DET in Bathurst which have been ongoing for a number of years under the leadership of Carole McDiarmid. The colourful, sign-bedecked protest vehicle cruised the main street tooting its horn, the occupants handing out more flyers.

Exhausted, sunburnt, hot and tired, everyone adjourned to the Edinburgh Castle Hotel on George Street for a well-earned drink and to go over the events of the day, when a chapter of history was made in Bathurst.

Peter Harvey orders cover-up prior to investigation

Posted October 27th, 2009 by jules85 on Sydney Indymedia

It has been revealed by a Carenne Saviour that the NSW Department of Education and Training's Child Protection Unit is making inquiries into matters at the Carenne Special School. The saviour alleges that the school has been forewarned by Bathurst Schools Director Peter Harvey who has ordered the destruction of evidence.

The saviour alleges that restraints used on students were removed from classrooms today at Peter Harvey's order due to the pending investigation. Staff have also been told not to use a fenced area, described as the "pig pen" where an autistic student was often left unsupervised when he was distressed.

It is beleived that one staff member commented on how they believed it was difficult to control students without the restraints and how she feared for her safety. These students are not criminals and must be treated in a humane and compassionate manner.

Questions must now be put to Carole McDiarmid, the Western Region Education Director. Did she know of Mr Harvey's order or did she issue it?

It is yet another example of the systemic cover-up and corruption at Carenne Special School and the Western Region at large.

NSW DET spin machine at it again

Posted October 22nd, 2009 by jules85 on Sydney Indymedia

The local newspaper for the Bathurst region, the Western Advocate ran an article yesterday about how Western NSW Education Director had visited Carenne Special School on Monday to inspect the new buildings which classes moved into at the beginning of this term.

In the article, Mrs McDiarmid said the new classrooms were "state-of-the art and the latest design for special education classes." and made claims that students and staff were thrilled with their new buildings.

The Carenne Saviours claim this is not so and is just another product of NSW Department of Education and Training spin. One saviour said "If the former principal had not been pushed by a staff member to have the rooms put down as severe classrooms thinking we would get more they would hae been more suitable, as always, this person interferes and botches everything up." The saviour told us that benches had to be modified and there were power points which dangle into the middle of the room which children like to try and swing off.

Complaints were also made about where the whiteboards were located and how there were skylights in the classroom which interfered with the operation of the school's data projectors.

Another saviour said "These are meant to be state-of-the art? They are no different to the other classrooms! You would think in this day and age we would have gotten things like Interactive Whiteboards built in but we had to move them from the other rooms and things went missing as they do."

The third Carenne saviour was less critical "At least they won't leak like the old demountables did, although when there is water running down the steps of the main wing, it pools at the door of the first classroom. Still, at least we don't need a bucket inside to catch the drips."

It sounds as though instead of taking the opportunity to listen to staff concerns, Mrs McDiarmid has used the visit to promote herself and the department.