Email addresses for Primary and Secondary Schools in Australia
Dear Department of Education,
Please could you provide me with a database of Names, addresses, contact emails and phone numbers of persons in charge at all Australian primary and secondary schools and also an up to date list of principals and vice principals included
Yours faithfully,
EO
Dear EO,
We refer to your email below seeking access under the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (Cth) (FOI Act) to the following documents:
“Please could you provide me with a database of Names, addresses, contact
emails and phone numbers of persons in charge at all Australian primary
and secondary schools and also an up to date list of principals and vice
principals included.”
The Department of Education and Training has received your request. I note
that your request, refers to the names and contact details of all
Australian primary and secondary schools. The department does not hold
this data and the subject matter is more closely connected to the
Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). As such,
I am notifying you that I have transferred your Freedom of Information
request to the ACARA in accordance with section 16 of the FOI Act.
Their relevant email address is [1][email address].
The ACARA will be in contact with you shortly regarding your request.
If you have any questions about your request, please contact us via email:
[2][email address]
Yours sincerely,
Freedom of Information Team
Department of Education and Training
Dear EO
My name is Peter Matheson, Board Secretary, Australian Curriculum,
Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). I refer to your Freedom of
Information (FOI) request made to the Department of Education and Training
(Commonwealth) (Department). I advise that I have agreed with the
Department for your request to be transferred to ACARA. I can see from the
Right to Know website that you have been notified by the Department of
this transfer.
I confirm that your FOI request is as follows: “Please could you provide
me with a database of Names, addresses, contact emails and phone numbers
of persons in charge at all Australian primary and secondary schools and
also an up to date list of principals and vice principals included”.
Prior to processing your FOI request, I provide the following information:
My interpretation of your request
1. ACARA is not in possession of a complete set for all the data
fields that you are requesting. ACARA does not possess a list of
principals or vice principals for Australian primary and secondary
schools.
2. Whilst ACARA does possess a contact name, street address and email
address for each school – it may or may not be of the person in charge. It
may be the principal of the school. Alternatively, it could relate to a
school administrator. ACARA does not possess contact details for members
of school Boards, who could also be caught in the scope of your request.
3. Subject to your feedback, I am interpreting your request as being
for:
- names and contact details (school address, work email and work
phone numbers) of school principals, linked with the relevant school, and
a description of whether this is a primary or secondary school; and
- names of vice-principals connected with the relevant school.
4. Whilst ACARA can process your request as a request under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth), the outcome is unlikely to be
favourable to you (for reasons discussed further below).
Australian Schools List
5. I advise that ACARA publishes a list of schools at
([1]http://asl.acara.edu.au/). This list will partially satisfy your
request. The published data fields on this website comprise: school name,
city, state, postcode, type and sector. I note that the data on the
Australian schools list can be downloaded in different formats.
6. Also, you may find the information on this webpage
([2]http://asl.acara.edu.au/Register/NewCons...) helpful. This webpage
provides information on how you can send requests for data on this website
via software. This could be useful for internet-based applications, as the
data on the Australian Schools List is updated, from time to time.
ACARA’s data access protocols
7. For the data fields that ACARA holds, ACARA provides access to the
data requested by third parties under the [3]Data Access Protocols – 2015
revision. These Protocols have been endorsed by the [4]Education Council
(comprising Australia’s nine education ministers). ACARA is bound to
follow the directions of the Education Council: section 7(1) of
the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority Act
2008 (Cth (ACARA Act).
8. Under the Protocols, different considerations apply, depending on
whether or not each data field is published.
9. Based on my interpretation of your request, ACARA holds some of the
contact information you have requested for some Australian schools (those
schools that have provided contact details for their principal, or
alternatively, their vice-principal). This data is unpublished.
10. I advise that you will need to read the Protocols to ascertain
whether you are eligible to apply for this data. Clause 35 of the
Protocols sets out the categories of applicants that would be considered.
11. For published data, applications are treated on a case by case basis.
If you are interested in requesting published data that is not on the
Australian Schools List, ACARA has a data access process at
([5]http://www.acara.edu.au/contact-us/acara...).
12. I note that ACARA was successful in an FOI matter before the
Administrative Appeals Tribunal in [6]Mark R Diamond and Chief Executive
Officer of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority
[2014] AATA 707. The document in that case was the My School database.
Whilst different considerations apply, many of the arguments that were
accepted by the Tribunal in that case are also applicable in relation to
your request. Certainly, strong arguments can be made that to provide you
with unpublished data in contravention of the Protocols would cause ACARA
to breach s7(1) of the ACARA Act, which would, or could reasonably be
expected to, have a substantial adverse effect on the proper and efficient
conduct of the operations of an agency (one of the conditional exemptions
upheld by the Tribunal in the Diamond matter).
In light of the above, please let me know whether you withdraw your FOI
request. I would be happy to answer your queries regarding ACARA’s data
access process, if the data on the Australian Schools List is insufficient
for your purposes.
Please feel free to call me to discuss.
Kind regards
Peter
Peter Matheson
Board Secretary
Office of the CEO
[7]Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority
Level 13 | Tower B | Centennial Plaza | 280 Elizabeth Street | Sydney |
NSW 2000
phone: 02 8098 3116 //[mobile number]
[8]cid:image001.jpg@01D22E05.AE4A3A20
ACARA will improve the learning of all young Australians
Subscribe to [9]ACARA Update | Like us on [10]Facebook | Follow us on
[11]Twitter | See our [12]LinkedIn page
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
From: Education - FOI [[13]mailto:[Department of Education request email]]
Sent: Friday, 10 February 2017 3:37 PM
To: [14][FOI #3019 email]
Subject: Re: Freedom of Information request - Email addresses for Primary
and Secondary Schools in Australia [SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
Dear EO,
We refer to your email below seeking access under the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (Cth) (FOI Act) to the following documents:
“Please could you provide me with a database of Names, addresses, contact
emails and phone numbers of persons in charge at all Australian primary
and secondary schools and also an up to date list of principals and vice
principals included.”
The Department of Education and Training has received your request. I note
that your request, refers to the names and contact details of all
Australian primary and secondary schools. The department does not hold
this data and the subject matter is more closely connected to the
Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). As such,
I am notifying you that I have transferred your Freedom of Information
request to the ACARA in accordance with section 16 of the FOI Act.
Their relevant email address is [15][email address].
The ACARA will be in contact with you shortly regarding your request.
If you have any questions about your request, please contact us via email:
[16][email address]
Yours sincerely,
Freedom of Information Team
Department of Education and Training
Dear EO
I refer to my posting below. As I have not heard from you, I am treating
your Freedom of Information request as being withdrawn.
Kind regards
Peter
Peter Matheson
Board Secretary
Office of the CEO
[1]Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority
Level 13 | Tower B | Centennial Plaza | 280 Elizabeth Street | Sydney |
NSW 2000
phone: 02 8098 3116 //[mobile number]
[2]cid:image001.jpg@01D22E05.AE4A3A20
ACARA will improve the learning of all young Australians
Subscribe to [3]ACARA Update | Like us on [4]Facebook | Follow us on
[5]Twitter | See our [6]LinkedIn page
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
From: Matheson, Peter
Sent: Monday, 13 February 2017 8:19 PM
To: [7][FOI #3019 email]
Cc: Verey, Peter <[8][email address]>
Subject: EO - Freedom of Information request - Contact details regarding
Australian primary and secondary schools
Dear EO
My name is Peter Matheson, Board Secretary, Australian Curriculum,
Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). I refer to your Freedom of
Information (FOI) request made to the Department of Education and Training
(Commonwealth) (Department). I advise that I have agreed with the
Department for your request to be transferred to ACARA. I can see from the
Right to Know website that you have been notified by the Department of
this transfer.
I confirm that your FOI request is as follows: “Please could you provide
me with a database of Names, addresses, contact emails and phone numbers
of persons in charge at all Australian primary and secondary schools and
also an up to date list of principals and vice principals included”.
Prior to processing your FOI request, I provide the following information:
My interpretation of your request
1. ACARA is not in possession of a complete set for all the data fields
that you are requesting. ACARA does not possess a list of principals or
vice principals for Australian primary and secondary schools.
2. Whilst ACARA does possess a contact name, street address and email
address for each school – it may or may not be of the person in charge. It
may be the principal of the school. Alternatively, it could relate to a
school administrator. ACARA does not possess contact details for members
of school Boards, who could also be caught in the scope of your request.
3. Subject to your feedback, I am interpreting your request as being
for:
- names and contact details (school address, work email and work
phone numbers) of school principals, linked with the relevant school, and
a description of whether this is a primary or secondary school; and
- names of vice-principals connected with the relevant school.
4. Whilst ACARA can process your request as a request under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth), the outcome is unlikely to be
favourable to you (for reasons discussed further below).
Australian Schools List
5. I advise that ACARA publishes a list of schools at
([9]http://asl.acara.edu.au/). This list will partially satisfy your
request. The published data fields on this website comprise: school name,
city, state, postcode, type and sector. I note that the data on the
Australian schools list can be downloaded in different formats.
6. Also, you may find the information on this webpage
([10]http://asl.acara.edu.au/Register/NewCons...) helpful. This webpage
provides information on how you can send requests for data on this website
via software. This could be useful for internet-based applications, as the
data on the Australian Schools List is updated, from time to time.
ACARA’s data access protocols
7. For the data fields that ACARA holds, ACARA provides access to the
data requested by third parties under the [11]Data Access Protocols – 2015
revision. These Protocols have been endorsed by the [12]Education Council
(comprising Australia’s nine education ministers). ACARA is bound to
follow the directions of the Education Council: section 7(1) of
the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority Act
2008 (Cth (ACARA Act).
8. Under the Protocols, different considerations apply, depending on
whether or not each data field is published.
9. Based on my interpretation of your request, ACARA holds some of the
contact information you have requested for some Australian schools (those
schools that have provided contact details for their principal, or
alternatively, their vice-principal). This data is unpublished.
10. I advise that you will need to read the Protocols to ascertain
whether you are eligible to apply for this data. Clause 35 of the
Protocols sets out the categories of applicants that would be considered.
11. For published data, applications are treated on a case by case basis.
If you are interested in requesting published data that is not on the
Australian Schools List, ACARA has a data access process at
([13]http://www.acara.edu.au/contact-us/acara...).
12. I note that ACARA was successful in an FOI matter before the
Administrative Appeals Tribunal in [14]Mark R Diamond and Chief Executive
Officer of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority
[2014] AATA 707. The document in that case was the My School database.
Whilst different considerations apply, many of the arguments that were
accepted by the Tribunal in that case are also applicable in relation to
your request. Certainly, strong arguments can be made that to provide you
with unpublished data in contravention of the Protocols would cause ACARA
to breach s7(1) of the ACARA Act, which would, or could reasonably be
expected to, have a substantial adverse effect on the proper and efficient
conduct of the operations of an agency (one of the conditional exemptions
upheld by the Tribunal in the Diamond matter).
In light of the above, please let me know whether you withdraw your FOI
request. I would be happy to answer your queries regarding ACARA’s data
access process, if the data on the Australian Schools List is insufficient
for your purposes.
Please feel free to call me to discuss.
Kind regards
Peter
Peter Matheson
Board Secretary
Office of the CEO
[15]Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority
Level 13 | Tower B | Centennial Plaza | 280 Elizabeth Street | Sydney |
NSW 2000
phone: 02 8098 3116 //[mobile number]
[16]cid:image001.jpg@01D22E05.AE4A3A20
ACARA will improve the learning of all young Australians
Subscribe to [17]ACARA Update | Like us on [18]Facebook | Follow us on
[19]Twitter | See our [20]LinkedIn page
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
From: Education - FOI [[21]mailto:[Department of Education request email]]
Sent: Friday, 10 February 2017 3:37 PM
To: [22][FOI #3019 email]
Subject: Re: Freedom of Information request - Email addresses for Primary
and Secondary Schools in Australia [SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
Dear EO,
We refer to your email below seeking access under the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (Cth) (FOI Act) to the following documents:
“Please could you provide me with a database of Names, addresses, contact
emails and phone numbers of persons in charge at all Australian primary
and secondary schools and also an up to date list of principals and vice
principals included.”
The Department of Education and Training has received your request. I note
that your request, refers to the names and contact details of all
Australian primary and secondary schools. The department does not hold
this data and the subject matter is more closely connected to the
Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). As such,
I am notifying you that I have transferred your Freedom of Information
request to the ACARA in accordance with section 16 of the FOI Act.
Their relevant email address is [23][email address].
The ACARA will be in contact with you shortly regarding your request.
If you have any questions about your request, please contact us via email:
[24][email address]
Yours sincerely,
Freedom of Information Team
Department of Education and Training