Values – Department Values for Schools

Overview

The department’s Values are the Public Sector Values

Public education, early childhood development and training are critical public services. The jobs we do to provide high quality education services are very important. As employees of the public sector, all department employees working in government schools and offices are required to demonstrate the Public Sector Values in accordance with the Code of Conduct for Victorian Public Sector Employees. The Code of conduct for Victorian public sector employees requires department employees to familiarise themselves and act in accord with these values.

As public sector employees, we uphold the Victorian public sector values:

• Responsiveness
• Integrity
• Impartiality
• Accountability
• Respect
• Leadership
• Human Rights

Our (the department’s) Values underpin how we interact with colleagues, learners and families, members of the community, suppliers and government. We are all required to uphold and demonstrate the department’s Values in our work.

For more information, read the materials and tools provided on this page and in the Resources tab to support you in understanding our Values and how they apply to the work that you do.

The Public Sector Values

The Public Administration Act 2004 establishes values to guide conduct and performance in the Victorian Public Sector.

Our Values and the Code of Conduct based on the Values provide the foundation of the integrity and accountability framework for all public sector employees.

Our Values define what is important to an organisation and how things will be done. In the Victorian public sector, they underpin an employee's interaction with the Government, community, suppliers and other employees.

For resources for school employees, please refer to the Resources tab.

For resources and information for central and regional office employees, please refer to the Our Values — Central and Regional Office Employees(opens in a new window) page.

Additional information

Decision making on all human resources matters should be undertaken in accordance with the department's ethical decision-making model which provides a guide for managers, principals and other employees to follow when thinking through ethical challenges, exploring ethical dilemmas and identifying ethical courses of action. Further information, including the Ethical Decision Making Guide, is available on the department's integrity portal at Ethical Decision Making(opens in a new window).

The Victorian Public Sector Commission (VPSC) also provides guidance on ethics in public sector workplaces:

• VPSC Ethics, Behaviours and Culture(opens in a new window)
• VPSC Ethics in the Workplace(opens in a new window)

Related policies

• Code of Conduct
• Ministerial Orders — Employment
• Victorian Public Sector Employment Principles and Standards

Relevant legislation

• Public Administration Act 2004 (Vic)(opens in a new window)

Policy and Guidelines

There is no further guidance for this topic. For more information, refer to the Resources tab.

Resources

The following resources are available for employees in school locations.

Principals may decide how and when to use the resources below and which are the most useful for their employees.

Values e-Thank You card

You can send a Values eThank You card to your colleagues to recognise them for living Our Values every day. Because at DE, how we behave and treat one another is just as important as the work we do.

The Values e-Thank You card intranet page is available to all school and corporate staff.

• Values eThank You card site

Other resources

The Word versions for each of the PDF documents below have been created for system reading software. The content is the same, however the formatting and display is different to accommodate system reader functionality.

• Our Values Quick Reference Guide (Word)(opens in a new window)
• Our Values Quick Reference Guide (PDF)(opens in a new window)
• Conversation Cards for Schools Set 1 — Scenarios for Discussion (Word)(opens in a new window)
• Conversation Cards for Schools Set 1 — Scenarios for Discussion (PDF)(opens in a new window)
• Conversation Cards for Schools Set 2 — Scenarios for Discussion (Word)(opens in a new window)
• Conversation Cards for Schools Set 2 — Scenarios for Discussion (PDF)(opens in a new window)

Posters

• Posters (PDF)(opens in a new window)