Victorian Education Department Fined $150,000 After Student Loses Three Fingers

The Victorian Department of Education pleaded guilty after a Year 10 student suffered serious hand injuries while using an unguarded metal guillotine during a jewellery class at Beechworth Secondary College.

The Victorian Department of Education has been fined $150,000 after a Year 10 student suffered serious injuries while using a metal guillotine during a jewellery design class at Beechworth Secondary College. The case was heard in Wodonga Magistrates' Court on 23 September 2026, when the department pleaded guilty to two breaches of Victoria's Occupational Health and Safety Act. The incident occurred on 9 February 2024 during a jewellery class. According to agreed facts presented to the court, the student was working near a metal guillotine located in a back room attached to the main classroom. The machine was operated by a foot pedal and used a metal beam to cut material. At the time of the incident, two teachers left the main classroom to deal with a filing cabinet, leaving four students without direct supervision. The injured student was positioned near the rear of the machine while another student operated the foot pedal. The court heard that the machine did not have rear guarding and that there were no adequate signs marking the danger area or explaining operating procedures. When the machine was activated, the beam came down and severed three fingertips on the student's left hand. The injured student was transported by air to the Royal Melbourne Hospital and remained there for nine days. The student did not return to school for the remainder of that school term, apart from one day. A subsequent investigation identified several safety shortcomings at the school. These included inadequate supervision, a lack of guarding and signage around the machine and missing records showing that students had completed relevant competency or safety training. The court also heard that although a safe-work procedure and previous risk assessments existed, no risk assessment or competency records had been completed for the relevant class between the beginning of the 2024 school year and the date of the incident. Work Safe Victoria attended the school several days after the accident. A prohibition notice required the guillotine to be locked and additional safety measures to be introduced. Later in February 2024, the school replaced the older guillotines with new machines that included rear guarding. The school's trades classrooms were subsequently relocated to improve visibility around the guillotines. The Department of Education also updated its plant and equipment management policy and safety procedures following the incident. Additional guidance relating specifically to the use of guillotines in classrooms was also introduced. During the court hearing, the department's lawyer said the department had taken the incident and prosecution seriously and pointed to its early guilty plea and subsequent safety measures. The magistrate acknowledged the steps taken after the incident but said the safety deficiencies surrounding the machine were serious. The department was convicted and fined $150,000. The case highlights the importance of supervision, machine guarding, safety signage and competency checks when students use potentially dangerous equipment in school practical classes. The court also considered statements submitted by the injured student's family about the impact of the incident. Those statements were provided to the court but were not read aloud during the hearing. The incident occurred more than two years before the court outcome, but the conviction and fine were handed down on 23 September 2026, making the court decision a same-day Australian news development.