The Yukon government says it has fully implemented the 23 action items in the Safer Schools Action Plan, which focuses on improving students’ safety and well-being.

“While recognizing that the work to ensure students are safe at school will never end, the action items in the Safer Schools Action Plan emphasize creating safe and caring environments, transparency, accountability, victim-centered approaches, collaboration and reconciliation in education settings,” the government said in a statement Tuesday.

The plan was initiated in response to the Hidden Valley Elementary School Independent Review Report. The plan contains 23 commitments linked to the seven recommendations in the independent review.

The report was prompted by the Education department’s failure to notify school community parents that a then-education assistant had been charged with and convicted of a sexual offence committed at the school.

It has helped propel government-wide transformations to enhance the safety of students across Yukon schools as well as improve government’s ability to respond effectively to critical or serious incidents.

Since the plan’s launch in February 2022, the government said, “transformative work has been undertaken to address policy gaps and enhance safety and oversight across all Yukon schools and government departments.

Key advancements over the past year include:

• implementation of new policies and procedures for preventing and responding to harm by adults, including guidance for information sharing and reporting allegations to the RCMP (actions 1 and 6);

• completion of actions 2, 3, 11, 18 and 20, focused on enhancing corporate guidance and leadership capacity across the organization to improve co-ordination and response management of critical incidents;

• the development of comprehensive victim support plans (action 4);

• a new joint agreement between the Departments of Education and Health and Social Services regarding interdepartmental operations and communication when a child’s safety is, or is likely to be, at risk (action 7);

• new corporate procedures and guidance for responding to situations where employees are charged, convicted, or under investigation for criminal conduct, including improved information sharing with the RCMP within the bounds of appropriate legislation (action 8);

• completion of training and new requirements for all school-based staff on preventing and responding to harm by adults (action 10, 13 and 14);

• implementation of new onboarding practices for all school-based and administrative staff (action 12);

• development of processes to strengthen the collection, maintenance and archiving of the assignment of adults who work with students in school-related activities (action 15);

• development of a process for ongoing review of policies, procedures and best practices for higher risk educational settings (action 17);

• finalization of a Values and Ethics Code for territorial public servants (action 21);

• finalization of a new government-wide communications policy that outlines roles and responsibilities of the public service for leading internal and external communications related to critical incidents and emergencies (action 22); and

• an updated temporary assignment directive to provide employees with development opportunities and encourage sharing and networking between departments (action 23).

The government employed a whole-of-government approach to the plan’s implementation. That involved close collaboration among key departments and the Executive Council Office.

It also worked closely with the RCMP, and “will continue to work with all stakeholders to ensure students are safe at school,” the government said.

“While progress to ensure student safety in places of learning has been achieved through the Safer Schools Action Plan, the Yukon government remains committed to the important work of ensuring student safety,” the government said.

“Ongoing efforts will focus on continued improvement, implementation and operationalization of strategies to protect our students.”

Premier Ranj Pillai said the government “recognizes the importance of community involvement in creating safer schools, and we remain committed to being an active leader in these efforts.

“Although the commitments in the Safer Schools Action Plan have been completed, our efforts to prioritize the safety and well-being of students, families, and staff do not stop here.

“Through continuous reviews, corrective actions and improvements, we will continue to work with the community to ensure that schools remain a safer, more welcoming, and supportive environment for everyone” the premier added.

Education Minister Jeanie McLean said the “health, safety and wellbeing of students has been – and always will be – our top priority in Yukon schools.

“The implementation of the Safer Schools Action Plan has led to significant improvements in government policies and processes that safeguard students in school settings.

“Our progress in this area motivates us to continue collaborating with partners in driving meaningful changes and building a stronger education system that prioritizes the safety and wellbeing of students, families and staff.”

In November 2022, the government accepted in principle all the recommendations in the Child and Youth Advocate’s review, “Responding to Sexualized Abuse in Yukon Schools: Review of Policies and Governmental Response”.

The government will provide the advocate with a progress report before Oct. 12.