THE mother of a six-year-old girl with autism who was allegedly sexually assaulted by a fellow pupil at a Launceston school may take the state government to the anti-discrimination commissioner over a lack of ongoing care after the incident.
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Jane* alerted the school to what she is calling a sexual assault at the start of term three.
In cases where such incidents have not been referred to the police, the Education Department treats them as incidents of inappropriate behaviour.
Jane said she did not report the incident to police for fear of the additional stress it would cause her daughter.
Although measures were initially put in place to ensure the girl's safety when she returned to school, they stopped one week later, due to a lack of funding with a temporary measure put in place last week.
Jane contacted The Examiner appalled at the treatment of her daughter and in disbelief at the little contact or direct action from Education Minister Nick McKim and the department over the situation.
She praised the principal for what had been able to be done, but said the principal's hands were tied when it came to being able to pay an aide to shadow the girl during recess and lunch breaks so she felt safe in the playground.
``I feel like the worst person in the world sending her to school, because here she is begging you and hurting herself and saying she doesn't want to go, but you send her,'' Jane said.
``It's not something that I want to do, it's heartbreaking.''
According to Tasmanian Disability Education Reform Lobby spokeswoman Kristen Desmond, under the state's disability education system, if the mother sought for a reasonable adjustment to be made at her daughter's school to cater for her autism but her needs were not met, she was within her rights to go either to the anti-discrimination or federal human rights commissioner.
Ms Desmond, who launched a parliamentary petition seeking a review of the disability education system last week, said she was appalled at the way the family had been treated.
She said she was aware of other families taking cases to the anti-discrimination commissioner.
*Names have been changed for privacy reasons.