DEC's $13 an hour job

One of the major issues with the Assisted School Travel Program has long been the amount of pay given to Travel Support Officers who escort students on vehicles to school and back everyday. In 2012, this amount of pay has risen to $13, much less than the officer would get paid working in a similar job somewhere else.

One Carenne Travel Support Officer has decided to speak out about the appalling conditions she faces everyday for miniscule pay and the lack of support she has received from the department and others.

The TSO says that on a daily basis she has to deal with students biting, hitting and kicking her as well as keep an eye on those with behavioural needs. She helps students get on and off the bus and ensures that they are correctly seated and restrained. She says that School Learning Support Officers are being paid in excess of $25 per hour for a similar job while she is being 'robbed' at $13 per hour.

'The department can't justify paying someone $13 an hour. It's not right. It has to be against the law', said the TSO.

The TSO claims to have approached the department which told her if she didn't like the pay offered she was free to leave and to have contacted the Assisted School Travel Contractors Association who told her they were not interested in helping TSOs when there are so many contractors who are being short changed by the department.

The TSO is now asking for anyone who believes that it is unfair to work as a TSO for $13 per hour to contact local member Paul Toole and show their support. He can be contacted by email paul.toole@parliament.nsw.gov.au or telephone (02) 6332 1300.

Neil Moon ignores dangerous parking by Minshull

Incompetent Carenne Special School principal Neil Moon has once again failed to address a serious issue showing that he is more interested in ensuring he looks good and his detractors look bad than he is in dealing with issues at the school. For months, staff have reported concerns about Steve Minshull, Capebase bus driver and Carenne music teacher parking on the grass behind the school office.

After months of having their concerns dismissed by Neil Moon, yesterday those concerns were shown to be completely valid when Steve Minshull almost hit a worker at Glenray next door to the school as he was leaving. Staff allege that Minshull was texting on his phone when he drove along the front lawn of the school and out Glenray's driveway where a worker was standing. The worker was forced to jump out of the way to miss being hit by Minshull.

Staff are concerned that a student could be hit by Minshull if he is allowed to continue parking where he does and that Neil Moon must take action.

Students subjected to exhaust fumes by Carenne Support

Just weeks after the muffler fell off Carenne Support's Oberon bus its Lithgow bus suffered from a similar issue with a hole in a muffler. Carenne Support is known for using defective vehicles and having quick fixes done on their vehicles without any consideration to student safety.

Parents report that for the last two days, Dave Graham has driven the bus with a hole in its exhaust, leaking exhaust fumes into the vehicle. One parent claims when she put her head inside the bus yesterday to speak to Robyn Graham that she could smell noxious fumes in the vehicle.

According to sources close to Carenne Support, Dave Graham has asked Mary Housler to source a relief vehicle but refused to do so placing students at serious risk.

Despite the leaking exhaust Neil Moon is still allowing classes to use the vehicle through the day, exposing more students to dangerous fumes.

More bizarre behaviour by Adam Ryan

One of the staff at Carenne Special School has placed himself in another inappropriate situation by becoming heavy involved with a student in his class' family in breach of the department's child protection guidelines.

We can reveal that Adam Ryan has been driving a student to and from school in his personal vehicle and has been observed at the student's house after hours. The department's policies forbid such behaviour as it can blur the staff/student relationship. Ryan has also said that he spends time with the student on weekends as they have become 'good friends'. The situation is reminiscent of the relationship that developed between Carenne teacher Anna Blackburn and student David Withyman, which progressed to a sexual liaison.

Ryan's behaviour, despite being against policy raises serious concerns due to allegations against him both at Bathurst High and Carenne. How Neil Moon can continue to place students at risk and Mr Ryan at risk of further allegations must be thoroughly investigated.

Isolation booth used by Nadine Dwyer and Adam Ryan

Serious concerns have been raised about behaviour management techniques used at Carenne Special School in the past including the use of a pig pen to house students, locking students in storerooms, sitting on them or calling the Police on autistic students to harass them. Another technique can now be added to the list with Nadine Dwyer and her School Learning Support Officer using an isolation booth to menace students.

On the outside wall of Dwyer's classroom she has a desk between two notice boards used as partitions. When a student becomes agitated they are taken to the area where a third partition is pushed against the other two, creating a cubicle no larger than 2x2 metres. Students are told to sit and be quiet and if they stand up they are hit on the head by Ryan or other students in a game he calls "Whack-a-Mole".

At times students have thrown the partitions, narrowly missing others. When they do so they are tackled and pinned against the wall by either Ryan or Dwyer. Dwyer justifies this behaviour by claiming that she has the "uncontrollable bastards" of the school.

The practice is against department policy and a breach of child protection guidelines, yet principal Neil Moon is well aware of it and does nothing to stop it.

Moon threatens parent, tells them they can't be trusted

Carenne Gate has learned that a complaint has been filed at the Bathurst SEA by a parent posting on this blog as "Mr Irate" about Neil Moon's behaviour towards him. The parent alleges that he has been told by Moon he is not to be trusted and has been threatened with an Inclosed Lands Notice and his child to be transferred to another school if he continues to comment on this blog.

Mr Irate claims that he has been told by Neil Moon he will not speak to him without two additional staff from the school being present as he "can not be trusted" and is "nothing more than a trouble maker". Mr Irate alleges that when he speaks to Moon that he is not taken seriously and that Moon would rather fob him off than to deal with his concerns.

Whistleblowers at the school claim the behaviour isn't isolated towards this one parent. Nedkelly told Carenne Gate she knew of at least five parents who were suspected of posting on the blog that have been treated exactly the same way. "Neil Moon isn't certain who some of the parents are on here, so the most vocal ones are harassed," said nedkelly.

Instead of addressing issues, Neil Moon would rather silence his critics and continue to run Carenne into the ground.

Paul Knight resigns from Carenne Support

The mouth of Carenne Support Limited, Paul Knight has resigned from the board of directors following a disagreement with Geoff Salmon, Terry Mahony and Mary Housler. According to a source inside the organisation, the disagreement related to Salmon and Mahony's plans for a fundraising campaign to purchase replacement buses.

Knight believes that it wasn't right for Carenne Support to call for donations to purchase vehicles when it already has $150,000 in the bank and had been using them to make money. He believed to do so would bring more negative publicity to the organisation.

Carenne Special School conducted a fundraising appeal in 2004 and 2005 to purchase new vehicles for the school. Those vehicles ended up in the hands of Carenne Support instead of the school as they were purchased for. The falling out with Paul Knight shows how quickly those in control will turn on those who disagree with them.

Di Klavins in the firing line

Carenne Gate can reveal that the KLAN at Carenne School are planning on removing Dianne Klavins from her School Learning Support Officer position after she made a series of complaints about Michael Auld.

Klavins has made a series of complaints about Auld's favoritism of some students, ineffective classroom discipline, lack of structure and poor teaching style. Klavins has reported several occasions where Auld has left the classroom for over half an hour during teaching times. Neil Moon's response to the complaints has been to claim they are baseless or that he investigated and found nothing.

It has long been known that Auld is being protected by school staff, with parents complaining about his lack of results with most students. He has been described as ineffective yet remains a teacher. Auld has a history of poor results and students going backwards. Unfortunately got anyone who complains about him, they soon find their job in jeopardy, with the complainant being persecuted.

In the case of Klavins, her dismissal won't be difficult with her past history of student abuse.

Adam Ryan's behaviour has long been a cause of concern

Adam Ryan now subject of more allegations

Carenne School Learning Support Officer Adam Ryan has previously come under Carenne Gate's attention for his inappropriate behaviour with students at Carenne. Carenne Gate can now reveal that during his involvement with students of the emotional disability and mild intellectual disability units at Bathurst High, his behaviour was also inappropriate and he had come under notice.

A whistleblower contacted Carenne Gate to report that Adam Ryan was quietly asked to have limited involvement with students at Bathurst High Campus of Denison College by Head Teacher Darren Hamilton. The whistleblower claims that Ryan used to hang around female students in the special education classes "like a bad smell" and often had discussions with them of a "sexual nature".


The whistleblower also claims to be aware of a relationship between Ryan and a student who is now at Carenne. The whistleblower told Carenne Gate -

"I was aware that there were concerns about the relationship between Adam and ........ and reported this to Gaye Dunshea. When I heard he was working at Carenne, I thought bloody hell, this bloke is obsessed with her because he started not long after she started there."

The whistleblower claims that it is "common knowledge" at Bathurst High that Ryan takes an unusual interest in vulnerable female students. "If you have a girl who has low self-esteem or has difficulty conducting herself, Adam Ryan will be there," said the whistleblower. The whistleblower also says that a number of students have claimed to have had sexual relations with Ryan, but these were dismissed by Dunshea as the students are "disturbed" and "distort reality".

It's time for a full and proper investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct surrounding Adam Ryan and for him to be stood down until the investigation is properly carried out.

Ros Luther in the firing line

Carenne School's infamous child abuser, liar and trouble-making Assistant Principal Ros Luther is in the firing line with the Serious Misconduct Investigation Team of EPAC taking an interest in her conduct. Carenne Gate can reveal that SMIT investigators are starting an investigation into the assistant principal.


According to senior departmental staff, Neil Moon has requested that Luther be investigated following her leaking of information about a meeting between staff and a bus driver to this blog. As a result of that request, complaints made to Bathurst SEA about Luther recently will also be investigated.

One complaint about Luther was made by a member of staff at the school after she attempted to harass a bus driver by making her look as though she wasn't properly carrying out her job. According to the whistleblower, Luther told the bus driver that a student had gone home early and that he wouldn't be on the bus in the afternoon. When the bus driver drove off, Luther was heard saying "I fooled that bitch, now to tell Neil" to Michael Auld. During this time, the student was locked in the school hall unsupervised until the bus driver returned.

The second complaint concerns allegations of Luther and her aide Jasmine Ryan locking a student in a store room and teasing him when he became upset. The parent spoke to Neil Moon and Ros Luther about the incident but was told that the student was lying and that they wouldn't look into complaints which had come from a student via a parent. Ros Luther is reported to have said that the student is a "known liar" and that he would "say or do anything to get out of trouble".

It is hoped that the investigation will also look at Luther's past conduct which involves locking students in a pig pen, locking students in a store room, encouraging students to look at pornography and leaving students unsupervised.

Capebase caught out on cheap modifications, unlicenced driver

Capebase was caught out on it's cheap and illegal vehicle modifications today after Police discovered that  the bus used for Capebase's Blayney run had seats removed without being checked by an engineer and updating it's seating capacity. Inquires by Police discovered that the vehicle was listed as having 14 seats with the RTA.

Due to Les Ross' incompetence in having the vehicle modified without an engineering certificate it can not be driven on a car licence legally. Unfortunately Steve Minshull found out the hard way when he was told by Police he can't drive the vehicle on his licence. This afternoon Minshull was forced to use a hire vehicle while Ross made arrangements to have the vehicle re-certified.

It is yet another blotch on Capebase's record which the department will do nothing about.

Assistant Principal Ros Luther leaks school information

Carenne Special School's incompetent assistant principal, Ros Luther has once again attempted to provide information to this blog to further her own Agenda. Luther, who has a history of leaking confidential information, encouraging students to look at pornography, neglect of students and torture contacted Carenne Gate to inform us of allegations made against her by Cheryl Chaplin.

In her email, Luther details an incident at the school on Monday involving a student being left behind and the response by the driver and a complaint made about her by the bus driver.

It shows how Ros Luther will side with whoever she can to gain an advantage. It's time this evil woman is sacked.