Lawyers are weighing up launching a class action against the Victorian government after public school teachers preyed on students for decades.
Slater and Gordon Lawyers on Friday announced it was investigating bringing compensation claims and a class action against the Victorian government on behalf of child sex abuse survivors who attended Beaumaris Primary School and other government schools.
A damning board of inquiry report tabled on Wednesday derided the state's Department of Education, finding it woefully failed to protect children from the risk of sexual abuse as it did not have policies to deal with allegations or convictions.
Slater and Gordon Victorian abuse law practice leader Sam Carroll described the findings as deeply concerning.
"Most concerning for us, when we read it, is the government put the reputation of the education system ahead of the safety of school children," Mr Carroll told AAP.
"That's why the government needs to be held accountable."
Slater and Gordon was considering how to best get survivors compensation, whether through many individual claims or a class action.
It was already in touch with some survivors of sex abuse in Victorian schools and urged others who wanted to pursue claims dating as far back as the 1960s to contact the firm.
About 120 victims, affected community members and stakeholders told their stories to the inquiry.
The students were usually boys aged between nine and 12 years when the abuse started.
Sometimes the abuse happened once or a few times but for others it was sustained over weeks, months or years.
After the inquiry's report was released, a spokesman for the Department of Education said it was deeply sorry for the harm inflicted and committed to victim support and ensuring it wouldn't happen again.
Arnold Thomas and Becker Lawyers are pursuing claims against about 240 Victorian schools on behalf of almost 400 people who allege they were victims of abuse at school.
Among the former students, 100 have approached the law firm in the past six months.
Most attended state schools but some attended independent schools.
Arnold Thomas and Becker abuse practice head Kim Price said a class action was not in survivors' best interests.
"Given the number of individuals impacted, across hundreds of schools and in different circumstances over many decades, each case needs to be assessed on its own facts so that the best outcome can be achieved for each survivor," he told AAP.
Mr Price has called for a full and proper probe into Victorian schools' practices and policies for dealing with sexual abuse allegations.
Slater and Gordon said it had a specialised team ready to listen to survivors' stories and guide them through the legal process in a trauma-informed way.
A Victorian government spokesperson said it would continue to engage with victim-survivors while considering a response to the board’s report.
"We thank the victim-survivors and their families for their courageous contribution to the Board of Inquiry," they said.
"They shared stories of trauma and abuse that no child should bear, let alone in a place that should have been their place of safety, their school.”
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
