Copyright advice

How do I know if the department owns copyright in materials?

The department will generally own copyright in materials if:

• There is a copyright notice with the department name or logo.
• It was created by the department (e.g. Curriculum, Policy areas).
• A staff member from your school created the materials as part of their employment with the department.

Read more about Copyright (staff only) for NSW public schools.

What if I am not sure whether the department owns copyright?

If you are unsure whether the department owns copyright DO NOT upload the materials to your website. You must first check:

• If the material has a copyright notice on it naming the owner (e.g. © John Smith, 2008).
• Where the material originated from (i.e. it is unlikely to be owned by the department if it comes from someone else's website). Smartcopying is the official guide for all copyright issues for Australian schools. It includes a range of guides, information sheets, FAQs, legal requirements and resources. Visit Smartcopying for the latest, authoritative information and guidance..

If you are still not sure whether the department owns copyright and you would really like to use the material, contact the department's Copyright Unit at copyright@det.nsw.edu.au.

What if the department doesn't own copyright in something and I still want to upload it to the website?

Schools are not permitted to place someone else's copyright materials on a publicly accessible website (there are different rules for intranets and school networks). If you want to upload third party content from a website you will need to seek permission directly from the copyright owner.