Police Checks and the School Administrator:

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An amendment to Ontario's Education Act requires all principals and vice-principals to submit to a criminal background check and to provide an annual offence declaration form. The penalty for not filing these forms could be a suspension without pay. The penalty for filing a false declaration could be serious discipline.

These changes were brought about as a result of amendments to the Education Act and its Regulations, in particular Ontario Regulation 521. The Regulation requires that boards collect criminal background checks on all staff by July 31, 2003, with the exception of staff hired after December 31, 2001, for whom the board has collected a criminal background check, and teachers certified by the Ontario College of Teachers since December 31, 1998. Staff hired since December 31, 2001, for whom the board has collected a criminal background check must submit an offence declaration annually starting on September 1, 2003. All staff is required to submit annual offence declarations effective September 2004.

Staff members have two ways to comply with this Regulation. If a school board has chosen to use the services of the Ontario Education Services Corporation (OESC), staff members may sign a consent form authorizing the Ontario Provincial Police to search the Canadian Police Information Centre Records and disclose their criminal record information in confidence to the OESC. If a school board is not using the services of OESC, the staff may obtain their criminal record through the local police services and submit the original report to the designated board contact no later than July 31, 2003.

A Criminal Code conviction for the purposes of completing the offence declaration would include offences for which you have not received a pardon such as: a failure to stop at the scene of an accident, impaired driving, assault, theft or using a credit card knowing that it has been cancelled. If you have pleaded guilty or were convicted of an offence under the Control Drug and Substances Traffic Act, Provincial Offences Act, Highway Act, Firearms Act, Customs Act or a Criminal Code Offence as a Young Offender, you are not required to declare such convictions.

If you have concerns about what to disclose on the declaration, you should seek legal advice.

For more information about Professional Legal Expense Insurance for Principals & Vice-Principals (PLEI) or to find a broker in your province, click here.