Victorian Government Response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse

6.1

Creating child safe communities through prevention

6.2

Creating child safe communities through prevention

i. an adult they know may be at risk of perpetrating child sexual abuse
ii. a child or young person they know may be at risk of sexual abuse or harm
iii. a child they know may be displaying harmful sexual behaviours.

6.3

Creating child safe communities through prevention

i. build the evidence base for using best practices to prevent child sexual abuse and harmful sexual behaviours in children
ii. guide the development and refinement of interventions, including the piloting and testing of initiatives before they are implemented.

6.4

What makes institutions safer for children

6.5

What makes institutions safer for children

The Child Safe Standards are:

1. Child safety is embedded in institutional leadership, governance and culture
2. Children participate in decisions affecting them and are taken seriously
3. Families and communities are informed and involved
4. Equity is upheld and diverse needs are taken into account
5. People working with children are suitable and supported
6. Processes to respond to complaints of child sexual abuse are child focused
7. Staff are equipped with the knowledge, skills and awareness to keep children safe through continual education and training
8. Physical and online environments minimise the opportunity for abuse to occur
9. Implementation of the Child Safe Standards is continuously reviewed and improved
10. Policies and procedures document how the institution is child safe.

6.6

What makes institutions safer for children

Institutions should be guided by the following core components when implementing the Child Safe Standards:

Standard 1: Child safety is embedded in institutional leadership, governance and culture

a. The institution publicly commits to child safety and leaders champion a child safe culture.
b. Child safety is a shared responsibility at all levels of the institution.
c. Risk management strategies focus on preventing, identifying and mitigating risks to children.
d. Staff and volunteers comply with a code of conduct that sets clear behavioural standards towards children.
e. Staff and volunteers understand their obligations on information sharing and recordkeeping.

Standard 2: Children participate in decisions affecting them and are taken seriously:

a. Children are able to express their views and are provided opportunities to participate in decisions that affect their lives.
b. The importance of friendships is recognised and support from peers is encouraged, helping children feel safe and be less isolated.
c. Children can access sexual abuse prevention programs and information.
d. Staff and volunteers are attuned to signs of harm and facilitate child-friendly ways for children to communicate and raise their concerns.

Standard 3: Families and communities are informed and involved

a. Families have the primary responsibility for the upbringing and development of their child and participate in decisions affecting their child.
b. The institution engages in open, two-way communication with families and communities about its child safety approach and relevant information is accessible.
c. Families and communities have a say in the institution’s policies and practices.
d. Families and communities are informed about the institution’s operations and governance.

Standard 4: Equity is upheld and diverse needs are taken into account

a. The institution actively anticipates children’s diverse circumstances and responds effectively to those with additional vulnerabilities.
b. All children have access to information, support and complaints processes.
c. The institution pays particular attention to the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, children with disability, and children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

Standard 5: People working with children are suitable and supported

a. Recruitment, including advertising and screening, emphasises child safety.
b. Relevant staff and volunteers have Working With Children Checks.
c. All staff and volunteers receive an appropriate induction and are aware of their child safety responsibilities, including reporting obligations.
d. Supervision and people management have a child safety focus.

Standard 6: Processes to respond to complaints of child sexual abuse are child focused

a. The institution has a child-focused complaint handling system that is understood by children, staff, volunteers and families.
b. The institution has an effective complaint handling policy and procedure which clearly outline roles and responsibilities, approaches to dealing with different types of complaints and obligations to act and report.
c. Complaints are taken seriously, responded to promptly and thoroughly, and reporting, privacy and employment law obligations are met.

Standard 7: Staff are equipped with the knowledge, skills and awareness to keep children safe through continual education and training

a. Relevant staff and volunteers receive training on the nature and indicators of child maltreatment, particularly institutional child sexual abuse.
b. Staff and volunteers receive training on the institution’s child safe practices and child protection.
c. Relevant staff and volunteers are supported to develop practical skills in protecting children and responding to disclosures.

Standard 8: Physical and online environments minimise the opportunity for abuse to occur

a. Risks in the online and physical environments are identified and mitigated without compromising a child’s right to privacy and healthy development.
b. The online environment is used in accordance with the institution’s code of conduct and relevant policies.

Standard 9: Implementation of the Child Safe Standards is continuously reviewed and improved

a. The institution regularly reviews and improves child safe practices.
b. The institution analyses complaints to identify causes and systemic failures to inform continuous improvement.

Standard 10: Policies and procedures document how the institution is child safe

a. Policies and procedures address all Child Safe Standards.
b. Policies and procedures are accessible and easy to understand.
c. Best practice models and stakeholder consultation inform the development of policies and procedures.
d. Leaders champion and model compliance with policies and procedures.
e. Staff understand and implement the policies and procedures.

For the full text of this recommendation see the Final Report.

6.7

Improving child safe approaches

6.8

Improving child safe approaches

6.9

Improving child safe approaches

Legislative requirements to comply with the Child Safe Standards should cover institutions that provide:

a. accommodation and residential services for children, including overnight excursions or stays
b. activities or services of any kind, under the auspices of a particular religious denomination or faith, through which adults have contact with children
c. childcare or childminding services
d. child protection services, including out-of-home care
e. activities or services where clubs and associations have a significant membership of, or involvement by, children
f. coaching or tuition services for children
g. commercial services for children, including entertainment or party services, gym or play facilities, photography services, and talent or beauty competitions
h. services for children with disability
i. education services for children
j. health services for children
k. justice and detention services for children, including immigration detention facilities
l. transport services for children, including school crossing services.

6.10

Improving child safe approaches

6.11

Improving child safe approaches

Each independent state and territory oversight body should have the following additional functions:

a. provide advice and information on the Child Safe Standards to institutions and the community
b. collect, analyse and publish data on the child safe approach in that jurisdiction and provide that data to the proposed National Office for Child Safety
c. partner with peak bodies, professional standards bodies and/or sector leaders to work with institutions to enhance the safety of children
d. provide, promote or support education and training on the Child Safe Standards to build the capacity of institutions to be child safe
e. coordinate ongoing information exchange between oversight bodies relating to institutions’ compliance with the Child Safe Standards.

6.12

Improving child safe approaches

With support from governments at the national, state and territory levels, local governments should designate child safety officer positions from existing staff profiles to carry out the following functions:

a. developing child safe messages in local government venues, grounds and facilities
b. assisting local institutions to access online child safe resources
c. providing child safety information and support to local institutions on a needs basis
d. supporting local institutions to work collaboratively with key services to ensure child safe approaches are culturally safe, disability aware and appropriate for children from diverse backgrounds.

6.13

Improving child safe approaches

6.14

Improving child safe approaches

The Australian Government should be responsible for the following functions:

a. evaluate, publicly report on, and drive the continuous improvement of the implementation of the Child Safe Standards and their outcomes
b. coordinate the direct input of children and young people into the evaluation and continuous improvement of the Child Safe Standards
c. coordinate national capacity building and support initiatives and opportunities for collaboration between jurisdictions and institutions
d. develop and promote national strategies to raise awareness and drive cultural change in institutions and the community to support child safety.

6.15

Improving child safe approaches

The Australian Government should develop a new National Framework for Child Safety in collaboration with state and territory governments. The Framework should:

a. commit governments to improving the safety of all children by implementing long-term child safety initiatives, with appropriate resources, and holding them to account
b. be endorsed by the Council of Australian Governments and overseen by a joint ministerial body
c. commence after the expiration of the current National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children, no later than 2020
d. cover broader child safety issues, as well as specific initiatives to better prevent and respond to institutional child sexual abuse including initiatives recommended by the Royal Commission
e. include links to other related policy frameworks.

6.16

Improving child safe approaches

6.17

Improving child safe approaches

The National Office for Child Safety should report to Parliament and have the following functions:

a. develop and lead the coordination of the proposed National Framework for Child Safety, including national coordination of the Child Safe Standards
b. collaborate with state and territory governments to lead capacity building and continuous improvement of child safe initiatives through resource development, best practice material and evaluation
c. promote the participation and empowerment of children and young people in the National Framework and child safe initiatives
d. perform the Australian Government’s Child Safe Standards functions as set out at Recommendation 6.15
e. lead the community prevention initiatives as set out in Recommendation 6.2.

6.18

Improving child safe approaches

6.19

Preventing and responding to online child sexual abuse in institutions

Ministers for education, through the Council of Australian Governments, should establish a nationally consistent curriculum for online safety education in schools. The Office of the eSafety Commissioner should be consulted on the design of the curriculum and contribute to the development of course content and approaches to delivery. The curriculum should:

a. be appropriately staged from Foundation year to Year 12 and be linked with related content areas to build behavioural skills as well as technical knowledge to support a positive and safe online culture
b. involve children and young people in the design, delivery and piloting of new online safety education, and update content annually to reflect evolving technologies, online behaviours and evidence of international best practice approaches
c. be tailored and delivered in ways that allow all Australian children and young people to reach, access and engage with online safety education, including vulnerable groups that may not access or engage with the school system.

6.20

Preventing and responding to online child sexual abuse in institutions

Building on its current work, the Office of the eSafety Commissioner should oversee the delivery of national online safety education aimed at parents and other community members to better support children’s safety online. These communications should aim to:

a. keep the community up to date on emerging risks and opportunities for safeguarding children online
b. build community understanding of responsibilities, legalities and the ethics of children’s interactions online
c. encourage proactive responses from the community to make it ‘everybody’s business’ to intervene early, provide support or report issues when concerns for children’s safety online are raised
d. increase public awareness of how to access advice and support when online incidents occur.

6.21

Preventing and responding to online child sexual abuse in institutions

Pre-service education and in-service staff training should be provided to support child-related institutions in creating safe online environments. The Office of the eSafety Commissioner should advise on and contribute to program design and content. These programs should be aimed at:

a. tertiary students studying university, technical and further education, and vocational education and training courses, before entering child-related occupations; and could be provided as a component of a broader program of child sexual abuse prevention
education (see Recommendation 6.2)
b. staff and volunteers in schools and other child-related organisations, and could build on the existing web-based learning programs of the Office of the eSafety Commissioner

6.22

Preventing and responding to online child sexual abuse in institutions

In partnership with the proposed National Office of Child Safety (see Recommendations 6.16 and 6.17), the Office of the eSafety Commissioner should oversee the development of an online safety framework and resources to support all schools in creating child safe online environments. This work should build on existing school-based e-safety frameworks and guidelines, drawing on Australian and international models.

The school-based online safety framework and resources should be designed to:

a. support schools in developing, implementing and reviewing their online codes of conduct, policies and procedures to help create an online culture that is safe for children
b. guide schools in their response to specific online incidents, in coordination with other agencies. This should include guidance in complaint handling, understanding reporting requirements, supporting victims to minimise further harm, and preserving digital evidence to support criminal justice processes.

6.23

Preventing and responding to online child sexual abuse in institutions

State and territory education departments should consider introducing centralised mechanisms to support government and non-government schools when online incidents occur. This should result in appropriate levels of escalation and effective engagement with all relevant entities, such as the Office of the eSafety Commissioner, technical service providers and law enforcement. Consideration should be given to:

a. adopting the promising model of the Queensland Department of Education and Training’s Cyber Safety and Reputation Management Unit, which provides advice and a centralised coordination function for schools, working in partnership with relevant
entities to remove offensive online content and address other issues
b. strengthening or re-establishing multi-stakeholder forums and case-management for effective joint responses involving all relevant agencies, such as police, education, health and child protection.

6.24

Preventing and responding to online child sexual abuse in institutions

In consultation with the eSafety Commissioner, police commissioners from states and territories and the Australian Federal Police should continue to ensure national capability for coordinated, best practice responses by law enforcement agencies to online child sexual abuse. This could include through:

a. establishing regular meetings of the heads of cybersafety units in all Australian police departments to ensure a consistent capacity to respond to emerging incidents and share best practice approaches, tools and resources
b. convening regular forums and conferences to bring together law enforcement, government, the technology industry, the community sector and other relevant stakeholders to discuss emerging issues, set agendas and identify solutions to online child sexual abuse and exploitation
c. building capability across police departments, through in-service training for:

i. frontline police officers to respond to public complaints relating to issues of online child sexual abuse or harmful sexual behaviours
ii. police officers who liaise with young people in school and community settings.

7.1

Reporting institutional child sexual abuse

7.2

Reporting institutional child sexual abuse

7.3

Reporting institutional child sexual abuse

State and territory governments should amend laws concerning mandatory reporting to child protection authorities to achieve national consistency in reporter groups. At a minimum, state and territory governments should also include the following groups of individuals as mandatory reporters in every jurisdiction:

a. out-of-home care workers (excluding foster and kinship/relative carers)
b. youth justice workers
c. early childhood workers
d. registered psychologists and school counsellors
e. people in religious ministry

7.4

Reporting institutional child sexual abuse

7.5

Reporting institutional child sexual abuse

The Australian Government and state and territory governments should ensure that legislation provides comprehensive protection for individuals who make reports in good faith about child sexual abuse in institutional contexts. Such individuals should be protected from civil and criminal liability and from reprisals or other detrimental action as a result of making a complaint or report, including in relation to:

a. mandatory and voluntary reports to child protection authorities under child protection legislation
b. notifications concerning child abuse under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law.

7.6

Reporting institutional child sexual abuse

State and territory governments should amend child protection legislation to provide adequate protection for individuals who make complaints or reports in good faith to any institution engaging in child-related work about:

a. child sexual abuse within that institution or
b. the response of that institution to child sexual abuse.

Such individuals should be protected from civil and criminal liability and from reprisals or other detrimental action as a result of making a complaint or report.

7.7

Improving institutional responses to complaints

Consistent with Child Safe Standard 6: Processes to respond to complaints of child sexual abuse are child focused, institutions should have a clear, accessible and child-focused complaint handling policy and procedure that sets out how the institution should respond to complaints of child sexual abuse. The complaint handling policy and procedure should cover:

a. making a complaint
b. responding to a complaint
c. investigating a complaint
d. providing support and assistance
e. achieving systemic improvements following a complaint.

7.8

Improving institutional responses to complaints

Consistent with Child Safe Standard 1: Child safety is embedded in institutional leadership, governance and culture, institutions should have a clear code of conduct that:

a. outlines behaviours towards children that the institution considers unacceptable, including concerning conduct, misconduct or criminal conduct
b. includes a specific requirement to report any concerns, breaches or suspected breaches of the code to a person responsible for handling complaints in the institution or to an external authority when required by law and/or the institution’s complaint handling policy
c. outlines the protections available to individuals who make complaints or reports in good faith to any institution engaging in child-related work (see Recommendation 7.6 on reporter protections).

7.9

Oversight of institutional complaint handling

7.10

Oversight of institutional complaint handling

Reportable conduct schemes should provide for:

a. an independent oversight body
b. obligatory reporting by heads of institutions
c. a definition of reportable conduct that covers any sexual offence, or sexual misconduct, committed against, with, or in the presence of, a child
d. a definition of reportable conduct that includes the historical conduct of a current employee
e. a definition of employee that covers paid employees, volunteers and contractors
f. protection for persons who make reports in good faith
g. oversight body powers and functions that include:

i. scrutinising institutional systems for preventing reportable conduct and for handling and responding to reportable allegations, or reportable convictions
ii. monitoring the progress of investigations and the handling of complaints by institutions
iii. conducting, on its own motion, investigations concerning any reportable conduct of which it has been notified or otherwise becomes aware
iv. power to exempt any class or kind of conduct from being reportable conduct
v. capacity building and practice development, through the provision of training, education and guidance to institutions
vi. public reporting, including annual reporting on the operation of the scheme and trends in reports and investigations, and the power to make special reports to parliaments.

7.11

Oversight of institutional complaint handling

7.12

Oversight of institutional complaint handling

Reportable conduct schemes should cover institutions that:

• exercise a high degree of responsibility for children
• engage in activities that involve a heightened risk of child sexual abuse, due to institutional characteristics, the nature of the activities involving children, or the additional vulnerability of the children the institution engages with.

At a minimum, these should include institutions that provide:

a. accommodation and residential services for children, including:

i. housing or homelessness services that provide overnight beds for children and young people
ii. providers of overnight camps

b. activities or services of any kind, under the auspices of a particular religious denomination or faith, through which adults have contact with children
c. childcare services, including:

i. approved education and care services under the Education and Care Services National Law
ii. approved occasional care services

d. child protection services and out-of-home care, including:

i. child protection authorities and agencies
ii. providers of foster care, kinship or relative care
iii. providers of family group homes
iv. providers of residential care

e. disability services and supports for children with disability, including:

i. disability service providers under state and territory legislation
ii. registered providers of supports under the National Disability Insurance Scheme

f. education services for children, including:

i. government and non-government schools
ii. TAFEs and other institutions registered to provide senior secondary education or training, courses for overseas students or student exchange programs

g. health services for children, including:

i. government health departments and agencies, and statutory corporations
ii. public and private hospitals
iii. providers of mental health and drug or alcohol treatment services that have inpatient beds for children and young people

h. justice and detention services for children, including:

i. youth detention centres
ii. immigration detention facilities.

8.1

Records and recordkeeping

The Victorian Government:

accepts the recommendation as it applies to Victorian Government institutions; and

accepts the recommendation in principle as it applies to non-government institutions.

The Victorian Government will encourage non-government institutions to comply with this record retention standards and will consider whether it is necessary to introduce additional regulatory measures to bring about greater compliance. The Victorian Government also supports a consistent approach across all Australian jurisdictions.

8.2

Records and recordkeeping

8.3

Records and recordkeeping

8.4

Records and recordkeeping

All institutions that engage in child-related work should implement the following principles for records and recordkeeping, to a level that responds to the risk of child sexual abuse occurring within the institution.

Principle 1: Creating and keeping full and accurate records relevant to child safety and wellbeing, including child sexual abuse, is in the best interests of children and should be an integral part of institutional leadership, governance and culture. Institutions that care for or provide services to children must keep the best interests of the child uppermost in all aspects of their conduct, including recordkeeping. It is in the best interest of children that institutions foster a culture in which the creation and management of accurate records are integral parts of the institution’s operations and governance.

Principle 2: Full and accurate records should be created about all incidents, responses and decisions affecting child safety and wellbeing, including child sexual abuse. Institutions should ensure that records are created to document any identified incidents of grooming, inappropriate behaviour (including breaches of institutional codes of conduct) or child sexual abuse and all responses to such incidents. Records created by institutions should be clear, objective and thorough. They should be created at, or as close as possible to, the time the incidents occurred, and clearly show the author (whether individual or institutional) and the date created.

Principle 3: Records relevant to child safety and wellbeing, including child sexual abuse, should be maintained appropriately. Records relevant to child safety and wellbeing, including child sexual abuse, should be maintained in an indexed, logical and secure manner. Associated records should be collocated or cross-referenced to ensure that people using those records are aware of all relevant information.

Principle 4: Records relevant to child safety and wellbeing, including child sexual abuse, should only be disposed of in accordance with law or policy. Records relevant to child safety and wellbeing, including child sexual abuse, must only be destroyed in accordance with records disposal schedules or published institutional policies. Records relevant to child sexual abuse should be subject to minimum retention periods that allow for delayed disclosure of abuse by victims, and take account of limitation periods for civil actions for child sexual abuse.

Principle 5: Individuals’ existing rights to access, amend or annotate records about themselves should be recognised to the fullest extent. Individuals whose childhoods are documented in institutional records should have a right to access records made about them. Full access should be given unless contrary to law. Specific, not generic, explanations should be provided in any case where a record, or part of a record, is withheld or redacted. Individuals should be made aware of, and assisted to assert, their existing rights to request that records containing their personal information be amended or annotated, and to seek review or appeal of decisions refusing access, amendment or annotation.

The Victorian Government:

accepts the recommendation as it applies to Victorian Government institutions; and

accepts the recommendation in principle as it applies to non-government institutions.

The Victorian Government will encourage non-government institutions to comply with this record retention standards and will consider whether it is necessary to introduce additional regulatory measures to bring about greater compliance. The Victorian Government also supports a consistent approach across all Australian jurisdictions.

8.5

Records and recordkeeping

8.6

Improving information sharing across sectors

8.7

Improving information sharing across sectors

In establishing the information exchange scheme, the Australian Government and state and territory governments should develop a minimum of nationally consistent provisions to:

a. enable direct exchange of relevant information between a range of prescribed bodies, including service providers, government and non-government agencies, law enforcement agencies, and regulatory and oversight bodies, which have responsibilities related to children’s safety and wellbeing
b. permit prescribed bodies to provide relevant information to other prescribed bodies without a request, for purposes related to preventing, identifying and responding to child sexual abuse in institutional contexts
c. require prescribed bodies to share relevant information on request from other prescribed bodies, for purposes related to preventing, identifying and responding to child sexual abuse in institutional contexts, subject to limited exceptions
d. explicitly prioritise children’s safety and wellbeing and override laws that might otherwise prohibit or restrict disclosure of information to prevent, identify and respond to child sexual abuse in institutional contexts
e. provide safeguards and other measures for oversight and accountability to prevent unauthorised sharing and improper use of information obtained under the information exchange scheme
f. require prescribed bodies to provide adversely affected persons with an opportunity to respond to untested or unsubstantiated allegations, where such information is received under the information exchange scheme, prior to taking adverse action against such persons, except where to do so could place another person at risk of harm.

8.8

Improving information sharing across sectors

The Australian Government, state and territory governments and prescribed bodies should work together to ensure that the implementation of our recommended information exchange scheme is supported with education, training and guidelines. Education, training and guidelines should promote understanding of, and confidence in, appropriate information sharing to better prevent, identify and respond to child sexual abuse in institutional contexts, including by addressing:

a. impediments to information sharing due to limited understanding of applicable laws
b. unauthorised sharing and improper use of information.

8.9

Improving information sharing across sectors

The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Education Council should consider the need for nationally consistent state and territory legislative requirements about the types of information recorded on teacher registers. Types of information that the council should consider, with respect to a person’s registration and employment as a teacher, include:

a. the person’s former names and aliases
b. the details of former and current employers
c. where relating to allegations or incidents of child sexual abuse:

i. current and past disciplinary actions, such as conditions on, suspension of, and cancellation of registration
ii. grounds for current and past disciplinary actions
iii. pending investigations
iv. findings or outcomes of investigations where allegations have been substantiated
v. resignation or dismissal from employment.

8.10

Improving information sharing across sectors

The COAG Education Council should consider the need for nationally consistent provisions in state and territory teacher registration laws providing that teacher registration authorities may, and/or must on request, make information on teacher registers available to:

a. teacher registration authorities in other states and territories
b. teachers’ employers.

8.11

Improving information sharing across sectors

The COAG Education Council should consider the need for nationally consistent provisions

a. in state and territory teacher registration laws or
b. in administrative arrangements, based on legislative authorisation

for information sharing under our recommended information exchange scheme

providing that teacher registration authorities may or must notify teacher registration authorities in other states and territories and teachers’ employers of information they hold or receive about the following matters where they relate to allegations or incidents of child sexual abuse:

a. disciplinary actions, such as conditions or restrictions on, suspension of, and cancellation of registration, including with notification of grounds
b. investigations into conduct, or into allegations or complaints
c. findings or outcomes of investigations
d. resignation or dismissal from employment.

Accept in principle

8.12

Improving information sharing across sectors

8.13

Improving information sharing across sectors

State and territory governments should ensure that policies provide for the exchange of a student’s information when they move to another school, where:

a. the student may pose risks to other children due to their harmful sexual behaviours or
may have educational or support needs due to their experiences of child sexual abuse and

b. the new school needs this information to address the safety and wellbeing of the
student or of other students at the school.

State and territory governments should give consideration to basing these policies on our
recommended information exchange scheme (Recommendations 8.6 to 8.8).

8.14

Improving information sharing across sectors

State and territory governments should ensure that policies for the exchange of a student’s information when they move to another school:

a. provide that the principal (or other authorised information sharer) at the student’s previous school is required to share information with the new school in the circumstances described in Recommendation 8.13 and
b. apply to schools in government and non-government systems.

8.15

Improving information sharing across sectors

State and territory governments should ensure that policies about the exchange of a student’s information (as in Recommendations 8.13 and 8.14) provide the following safeguards, in addition to any safeguards attached to our recommended information exchange scheme:

a. information provided to the new school should be proportionate to its need for that information to assist it in meeting the student’s safety and wellbeing needs, and those of other students at the school
b. information should be exchanged between principals, or other authorised information sharers, and disseminated to other staff members on a need-to-know basis.

8.16

Improving information sharing across sectors

Accept in principle

8.17

Improving information sharing across sectors

State and territory governments should introduce legislation to establish carers registers in their respective jurisdictions, with national consistency in relation to:

a. the inclusion of the following carer types on the carers register:

i. foster carers
ii. relative/kinship carers
iii. residential care staff

b. the types of information which, at a minimum, should be recorded on the register

c. the types of information which, at a minimum, must be made available to agencies or bodies with responsibility for assessing, authorising or supervising carers, or other responsibilities related to carer suitability and safety of children in out-of-home care.

8.18

Improving information sharing across sectors

8.19

Improving information sharing across sectors

State and territory governments should consider the need for carers registers to include, at a minimum, the following information (register information) about, or related to, applicant or authorised carers, and persons residing on the same property as applicant/authorised home-based carers (household members):

a. lodgement or grant of applications for authorisation
b. status of the minimum checks set out in Recommendation 12.6 as requirements for authorisation, indicating their outcomes as either satisfactory or unsatisfactory
c. withdrawal or refusal of applications for authorisation in circumstances of concern (including in relation to child sexual abuse)
d. cancellation or surrender of authorisation in circumstances of concern (including in relation to child sexual abuse)
e. previous or current association with an out-of-home care agency, whether by application for authorisation, assessment, grant of authorisation, or supervision
f. the date of reportable conduct allegations, and their status as either current, finalised with ongoing risk-related concerns, and/or requiring contact with the reportable conduct oversight body.

8.20

Improving information sharing across sectors

State and territory governments should consider the need for legislative and administrative arrangements to require responsible agencies to:

a. record register information in minimal detail
b. record register information as a mandatory part of carer authorisation
c. update register information about authorised carers.

8.21

Improving information sharing across sectors

State and territory governments should consider the need for legislative and administrative arrangements to require responsible agencies:

a. before they authorise or recommend authorisation of carers, to:

i. undertake a check for relevant register information, and
ii. seek further relevant information from another out-of-home care agency where register information indicates applicant carers, or their household members (in the case of prospective home-based carers) have a prior or current association with that other agency

b. in the course of their assessment, authorisation, or supervision of carers, to:

i. seek further relevant information from other agencies or bodies, where register information indicates they hold, or may hold, additional information relevant to carer suitability, including reportable conduct information.

State and territory governments should give consideration to enabling agencies to seek further information for these purposes under our recommended information exchange scheme (Recommendations 8.6 to 8.8).

8.22

Improving information sharing across sectors

State and territory governments should consider the need for effective mechanisms to enable agencies and bodies to obtain relevant information from registers in any state or territory holding such information. Consideration should be given to legislative and administrative arrangements, and digital platforms, which will enable:

a. agencies responsible for assessing, authorising or supervising carers
b. other agencies, including jurisdictional child protection agencies and regulatory and oversight bodies, with responsibilities related to the suitability of persons to be carers and the safety of children in out-of-home care

to obtain relevant information from their own and other jurisdictions’ registers for the purpose of exercising their responsibilities and functions.

8.23

Improving information sharing across sectors

9.1

Dedicated community support services for victims and survivors

The Australian Government and state and territory governments should fund dedicated community support services for victims and survivors in each jurisdiction, to provide an integrated model of advocacy and support and counselling to children and adults who experienced childhood sexual abuse in institutional contexts.

Funding and related agreements should require and enable these services to:

a. be trauma-informed and have an understanding of institutional child sexual abuse
b. be collaborative, available, accessible, acceptable and high quality
c. use case management and brokerage to coordinate and meet service needs
d. support and supervise peer-led support models.

9.2

Dedicated community support services for victims and survivors

Accept in principle

9.3

Dedicated community support services for victims and survivors

Accept in principle

9.4

National service to navigate legal processes

The Australian Government should establish and fund a legal advice and referral service for victims and survivors of institutional child sexual abuse. The service should provide advice about accessing, amending and annotating records from institutions, and options for initiating police, civil litigation or redress processes as required. Support should include advice, referrals to other legal services for representation and general assistance for people to navigate the legal service system.

Funding and related agreements should require and enable these services to be:

a. trauma-informed and have an understanding of institutional child sexual abuse
b. collaborative, available, accessible, acceptable and high quality.

9.5

National telephone helpline and website

The Australian Government should fund a national website and helpline as a gateway to accessible advice and information on childhood sexual abuse. This should provide information for victims and survivors, particularly victims and survivors of institutional child sexual abuse, the general public and practitioners about supporting children and adults who have experienced sexual abuse in childhood and available services. The gateway may be operated by an existing service with appropriate experience and should:

a. be trauma-informed and have an understanding of institutional child sexual abuse
b. be collaborative, available, accessible, acceptable and high quality
c. provide telephone and online information and initial support for victims and survivors, including independent legal information and information about reporting to police
d. provide assisted referrals to advocacy and support and therapeutic treatment services.

9.6

Enhancing the capacity of specialist sexual assault services

The Australian Government and state and territory governments should address existing specialist sexual assault service gaps by increasing funding for adult and child sexual assault services in each jurisdiction, to provide advocacy and support and specialist therapeutic treatment for victims and survivors, particularly victims and survivors of institutional child sexual abuse. Funding agreements should require and enable services to:

a. be trauma-informed and have an understanding of institutional child sexual abuse
b. be collaborative, available, accessible, acceptable and high quality
c. use collaborative community development approaches
d. provide staff with supervision and professional development.

9.7

Enhancing the capacity of specialist sexual assault services

Accept in principle

9.8

Responsive mainstream services

Accept in principle

9.9

National leadership to reduce stigma, promote help-seeking and support good practices

The Australian Government, in conjunction with state and territory governments, should establish and fund a national centre to raise awareness and understanding of the impacts of child sexual abuse, support help-seeking and guide best practice advocacy and support and therapeutic treatment. The national centre’s functions should be to:

a. raise community awareness and promote destigmatising messages about the impacts of child sexual abuse

b. increase practitioners’ knowledge and competence in responding to child and adult victims and survivors by translating knowledge about the impacts of child sexual abuse and the evidence on effective responses into practice and policy. This should include activities to:

i. identify, translate and promote research in easily available and accessible formats for advocacy and support and therapeutic treatment practitioners
ii. produce national training materials and best practice clinical resources
iii. partner with training organisations to conduct training and workforce development programs
iv. influence national tertiary curricula to incorporate child sexual abuse and trauma-informed care
v. inform government policy making

c. lead the development of better service models and interventions through coordinating a national research agenda and conducting high-quality program evaluation. The national centre should partner with survivors in all its work, valuing their knowledge and experience

Accept in principle

10.1

A framework for improving responses

The Australian Government and state and territory governments should ensure the issue of children’s harmful sexual behaviours is included in the national strategy to prevent child sexual abuse that we have recommended (see Recommendations 6.1 to 6.3). Harmful sexual behaviours by children should be addressed through each of the following:

a. primary prevention strategies to educate family, community members, carers and professionals (including mandatory reporters) about preventing harmful sexual behaviours
b. secondary prevention strategies to ensure early intervention when harmful sexual behaviours are developing
c. tertiary intervention strategies to address harmful sexual behaviours.

10.2

Improving assessment and therapeutic intervention

Accept in principle

10.3

Improving assessment and therapeutic intervention

Accept in principle

10.4

Improving assessment and therapeutic intervention

10.5

Improving assessment and therapeutic intervention

Therapeutic intervention for children with harmful sexual behaviours should be based on the following principles:

a. a contextual and systemic approach should be used

b. family and carers should be involved

c. safety should be established

d. there should be accountability and responsibility for the harmful sexual behaviours

e. there should be a focus on behaviour change

f. developmentally and cognitively appropriate interventions should be used

g. the care provided should be trauma informed

h. therapeutic services and interventions should be culturally safe

i. therapeutic interventions should be accessible to all children with harmful sexual behaviours

10.6

Strengthening the workforce

10.7

Improving evaluation

12.1

Data collection and reporting

12.2

Data collection and reporting

The Australian Government and state and territory governments should prioritise enhancements to the Child Protection National Minimum Data Set to include:

a. data identifying children with disability, children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children
b. the number of children who were the subject of a substantiated report of sexual abuse while in out-of-home care
c. the demographics of those children
d. the type of out-of-home care placement in which the abuse occurred
e. information about when the abuse occurred
f. information about who perpetrated the abuse, including their age and their relationship
to the victim, if known.

12.3

Data collection and reporting

State and territory governments should agree on reporting definitions and data requirements to enable reporting in the Report on government services on outcome indicators for ‘improved health and wellbeing of the child’, ‘safe return home’ and ‘permanent care’.

12.4

Accreditation of out of home care service providers

Each state and territory government should revise existing mandatory accreditation schemes to:

a. incorporate compliance with the Child Safe Standards identified by the Royal Commission
b. extend accreditation requirements to both government and non-government out-of-home
care service providers.

12.5

Accreditation of out of home care service providers

In each state and territory, an existing statutory body or office that is independent of the relevant child protection agency and out-of-home care service providers, for example a children’s guardian, should have responsibility for:

a. receiving, assessing and processing applications for accreditation of out-of-home care service providers
b. conducting audits of accredited out-of-home care service providers to ensure ongoing compliance with accreditation standards and conditions.

12.6

Carer authorisation

In addition to a National Police Check, Working With Children Check and referee checks, authorisation of all foster and kinship/relative carers and all residential care staff should include:

a. community services checks of the prospective carer and any adult household members of home-based carers
b. documented risk management plans to address any risks identified through community services checks
c. at least annual review of risk management plans as part of carer reviews and more frequently as required.

12.7

Carer authorisation

All out-of-home care service providers should conduct annual reviews of authorised carers that include interviews with all children in the placement with the carer under review, in the absence of the carer.

12.8

Carer authorisation

Each state and territory government should adopt a model of assessment appropriately tailored for kinship/relative care. This type of assessment should be designed to:

a. better identify the strengths as well as the support and training needs of kinship/relative carers
b. ensure holistic approaches to supporting placements that are culturally safe
c. include appropriately resourced support plans

12.9

Child sexual abuse education strategy

All state and territory governments should collaborate in the development of a sexual abuse prevention education strategy, including online safety, for children in out-of-home care that includes:

a. input from children in out-of-home care and care-leavers
b. comprehensive, age-appropriate and culture-appropriate education about sexuality and healthy relationships that is tailored to the needs of children in out-of-home care
c. resources tailored for children in care, for foster and kinship/relative carers, for residential care staff and for caseworkers
d. resources that can be adapted to the individual needs of children with disability and their carers.

12.10

Creating a culture that supports disclosure and identification of child sexual abuse

State and territory governments, in collaboration with out-of-home care service providers and peak bodies, should develop resources to assist service providers to:

a. provide appropriate support and mechanisms for children in out-of-home care to communicate, either verbally or through behaviour, their views, concerns and complaints
b. provide appropriate training and support to carers and caseworkers to ensure they hear and respond to children in out-of-home care, including ensuring children are involved in decisions about their lives
c. regularly consult with the children in their care as part of continuous improvement processes.

12.11

Strengthening the capacity of carers, staff and caseworkers to support children

12.12

Identifying, assessing and supporting children with harmful sexual behaviours

When placing a child in out-of-home care, state and territory governments and out-of-home care service providers should take the following measures to support children with harmful sexual behaviours:

a. undertake professional assessments of the child with harmful sexual behaviours, including identifying their needs and appropriate supports and interventions to ensure their safety
b. establish case management and a package of support services
c. undertake careful placement matching that includes:

i. providing sufficient relevant information to the potential carer/s and residential care staff to ensure they are equipped to support the child, and additional training as necessary
ii. rigorously assessing potential threats to the safety of other children, including the child’s siblings, in the placement

12.13

Identifying, assessing and supporting children with harmful sexual behaviours

12.14

Preventing and responding to child sexual exploitation

All state and territory governments should develop and implement coordinated and multi-disciplinary strategies to protect children in residential care by:

a. identifying and disrupting activities that indicate risk of sexual exploitation
b. supporting agencies to engage with children in ways that encourage them to assist in the investigation and prosecution of sexual exploitation offences.

12.15

Preventing and responding to child sexual exploitation

Accept in principle

The Victorian Government will work with other jurisdictions to adopt a nationally consistent definition for child sexual exploitation through relevant agencies and portfolios.

The Victorian Government will consider the implementation and timing for the application of the new definition.

12.16

Increasing the stability of placements

All institutions that provide out-of-home care should develop strategies that increase the likelihood of safe and stable placements for children in care. Such strategies should include:

a. improved processes for ‘matching’ children with carers and other children in a placement, including in residential care
b. the provision of necessary information to carers about a child, prior to and during their placement, to enable carers to properly support the child
c. support and training for carers to deal with the different developmental needs of children as well as managing difficult situations and challenging behaviour.

12.17

Supporting kinship/relative care placements

Each state and territory government should ensure that:

a. the financial support and training provided to kinship/relative carers is equivalent to that provided to foster carers
b. the need for any additional supports are identified during kinship/relative carer assessments and are funded
c. additional casework support is provided to maintain birth family relationships.

12.18

Residential care

The key focus of residential care for children should be based on an intensive therapeutic model of care framework designed to meet the complex needs of children with histories of abuse and trauma.

12.19

Residential care

12.20

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children

Each state and territory government, in consultation with appropriate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations and community representatives, should develop and implement plans to:

a. fully implement the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle
b. improve community and child protection sector understanding of the intent and scope of the principle
c. develop outcome measures that allow quantification and reporting on the extent of the full application of the principle, and evaluation of its impact on child safety and the reunification of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children with their families
d. invest in community capacity building as a recognised part of kinship care, in addition to supporting individual carers, in recognition of the role of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in bringing up children.

12.21

Children with disability

Each state and territory government should ensure:

a. the adequate assessment of all children with disability entering out-of-home care
b. the availability and provision of therapeutic support
c. support for disability-related needs
d. the development and implementation of care plans that identify specific risk-management and safety strategies for individual children, including the identification of trusted and safe adults in the child’s life.

12.22

Care leavers

State and territory governments should ensure that the supports provided to assist all care-leavers to safely and successfully transition to independent living include:

a. strategies to assist care-leavers who disclose that they were sexually abused while in out-of-home care to access general post-care supports
b. the development of targeted supports to address the specific needs of sexual abuse survivors, such as help in accessing therapeutic treatment to deal with impacts of abuse, and for these supports to be accessible until at least the age of 25.

13.1

Child Safe Standards

13.2

Child Safe Standards

13.3

Child Safe Standards

13.4

Supporting boarding schools

13.5

Supporting boarding schools

13.6

Responding to complaints relating to children with harmful sexual behaviours

13.7

Guidance for teachers and principles

13.8

Teacher registration

14.1

Child Safe Standards

14.2

A representative voice for the sector

14.3

Expanding Play by the Rules

14.4

Improving communication

15.1

Contemporary detention environments

15.2

Contemporary detention environments

15.3

Youth detention

15.4

Youth detention

As part of efforts to mitigate risks of child sexual abuse in the physical environment of youth detention, state and territory governments should review legislation, policy and procedures to ensure:

a. appropriate and safe placements of children in youth detention, including a risk assessment process before placement decisions that identifies if a child may be vulnerable to child sexual abuse or if a child is displaying harmful sexual behaviours
b. children are not placed in adult prisons
c. frameworks take into account the importance of children having access to trusted adults, including family, friends and community, in the prevention and disclosure of child sexual abuse and provide for maximum contact between children and trusted
adults through visitation, and use of the telephone and audio-visual technology
d. best practice processes are in place for strip searches and other authorised physical contact between staff and children, including sufficient safeguards to protect children such as:

i. adequate communication between staff and the child before, during and after a search is conducted or other physical contact occurs
ii. clear protocols detailing when such practices are permitted and how they should be performed. The key elements of these protocols should be provided to children in an accessible format
iii. staff training that highlights the potential for strip searching to re-traumatise children who have been sexually abused and how the misuse of search powers can lead to sexual humiliation or abuse.

State and territory governments should consider implementing strategies for detecting contraband, such as risk assessments or body scanners, to minimise the need for strip searching children.

Accept in principle

15.5

Youth detention

State and territory governments should consider further strategies that provide for the cultural safety of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in youth detention including:

a. recruiting and developing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff to work at all levels of the youth justice system, including in key roles in complaint handling systems
b. providing access to interpreters, particularly with respect to induction and education programs, and accessing internal and external complaint handling systems
c. ensuring that all youth detention facilities have culturally appropriate policies and procedures that facilitate connection with family, community and culture, and reflect an understanding of, and respect for, cultural practices in different clan groups
d. employing, training and professionally developing culturally competent staff who understand the particular needs and experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, including the specific barriers that Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander children face in disclosing sexual abuse

15.6

Youth detention

15.7

Youth detention

15.8

Youth detention

15.9

Youth detention

State and territory governments should review the current internal and external complaint handling systems concerning youth detention to ensure they are capable of effectively dealing with complaints of child sexual abuse, including so that:

a. children can easily access child-appropriate information about internal complaint processes and external oversight bodies that may receive or refer children’s complaints, such as visitor’s schemes, ombudsmen, inspectors of custodial services,
and children’s commissioners or guardians

b. children have confidential and unrestricted access to external oversight bodies

c. staff involved in managing complaints both internally and externally include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and professionals qualified to provide trauma-informed care

d. complaint handling systems are accessible for children with literacy difficulties or who speak English as a second language

e. children are regularly consulted about the effectiveness of complaint handling systems and systems are continually improved.

15.10

Youth detention

State and territory governments should ensure they have an independent oversight body with the appropriate visitation, complaint handling and reporting powers, to provide oversight of youth detention. This could include an appropriately funded and independent Inspector of Custodial Services or similar body. New and existing bodies should have expertise in child-trauma, and the prevention and identification of child sexual abuse.

15.11

Immigration detention

15.12

Immigration detention

a. The Australian Government should establish a mechanism to regularly audit the implementation of the Child Safe Standards in immigration detention by staff, contractors and agents of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection. The outcomes of each audit should be publicly reported.

b. The Department of Immigration and Border Protection should contractually require its service providers to comply with the Child Safe Standards identified by the Royal Commission, as applied to immigration detention.

15.13

Immigration detention

15.14

Immigration detention

15.15

Immigration detention

The Department of Immigration and Border Protection should implement an independent visitors program in immigration detention.

17.1

Monitoring and reporting on implementation

17.2

Monitoring and reporting on implementation

17.3

Monitoring and reporting on implementation

17.4

Monitoring and reporting on implementation

The Australian Government should initiate a review to be conducted 10 years after the tabling of this Final Report. This review should:

a. establish the extent to which the Royal Commission’s recommendations have been implemented 10 years after the tabling of the Final Report

b. examine the extent to which the measures taken in response to the Royal Commission have been effective in preventing child sexual abuse, improving the responses of institutions to child sexual abuse and ensuring that victims and survivors of child sexual abuse obtain justice, treatment and support

c. advise on what further steps should be taken by governments and institutions to ensure continuing improvement in policy and service delivery in relation to child sexual abuse in institutional contexts.

17.5

Preserving the records of the Royal Commission

17.6

A national memorial to victims and survivors of child sexual abuse in institutional contexts

State and territory governments should:

a) within 12 months of the publication of this report, amend their WWCC laws to implement the standards identified in this report
b) once the standards are implemented, obtain agreement from the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), or a relevant ministerial council, before deviating from or altering the standards in this report, adopting changes across all jurisdictions
c) within 18 months from the publication of this report, amend their WWCC laws to enable clearances from other jurisdictions to be recognised and accepted.

The South Australian Government should, within 12 months of the publication of this report, replace its criminal history assessments with a WWCC scheme that incorporates the standards set out in this report.

The Commonwealth Government should, within 12 months of the publication of this report:

a. facilitate a national model for WWCCs by:

i. establishing a centralised database, operated by CrimTrac, that is readily accessible to all jurisdictions to record WWCC decisions
ii. together with state and territory governments, identifying consistent terminology to capture key WWCC decisions (for example, refusal, cancellation, suspension and grant) for recording into the centralised database
iii. enhancing CrimTrac’s capacity to continuously monitor WWCC cardholders’ national criminal history records

b. explore avenues to make international records more accessible for the purposes of WWCCs
c. identify and require all Commonwealth Government personnel, including contractors, undertaking child-related work, as defined by the child-related work standards set out in this report, to obtain WWCCs.

The Commonwealth, state and territory governments should, within 12 months of the publication of this report:

a. agree on a set of standards or guidelines to enhance the accurate and timely recording of information by state and territory police into CrimTrac’s system
b. review the information they have agreed to exchange under the National Exchange of Criminal History Information for People Working with Children (ECHIPWC), and establish a set of definitions for the key terms used to describe the different types of criminal history records so they are consistent across the jurisdictions (these key terms include pending charges, non-conviction charges and information about the circumstances of an offence)
c. take immediate action to record into CrimTrac’s system historical criminal records that are in paper form or on microfilm and which are not currently identified by CrimTrac’s initial database search
d. once these historical criminal history records are entered into CrimTrac’s system by all jurisdictions, check all WWCC cardholders against them through the expanded continuous monitoring process.

State and territory governments should:

a. amend their WWCC laws to provide that the phrase ‘contact with children’ refers to physical contact, face-to-face contact, oral communication, written communication or electronic communication
b. through COAG, or a relevant ministerial council, agree on standard definitions for each kind of contact and amend their WWCC laws to incorporate those definitions

State and territory governments should:

a. amend their WWCC laws to provide that contact with children must be a usual part of, and more than incidental to, the child-related work
b. through COAG, or a relevant ministerial council, agree on standard definitions for the phrases ‘usual part of work’ and ‘more than incidental to the work’, and amend their WWCC laws to incorporate those definitions.

State and territory governments should amend their WWCC laws to:

a. define the following as child-related work:

i. accommodation and residential services for children, including overnight excursions or stays
ii. activities or services provided by religious leaders, officers or personnel of religious organisations
iii. childcare or minding services
iv. child protection services, including out-of-home care (OOHC)
v. clubs and associations with a significant membership of, or involvement by, children
vi. coaching or tuition services for children
vii. commercial services for children, including entertainment or party services, gym or play facilities, photography services, and talent or beauty competitions
viii. disability services for children
ix. education services for children
x. health services for children
xi. justice and detention services for children, including immigration detention facilities where children are regularly detained
xii. transport services for children, including school crossing services
xiii. other work or roles that involve contact with children that is a usual part of, and more than incidental to, the work or roles.

b. require WWCCs for adults residing in the homes of authorised carers of children
c. remove all other remaining categories of work or roles

State and territory governments should amend their WWCC laws to incorporate a consistent and simplified list of offences, including:

a. engaging in child-related work without holding, or having applied for, a WWCC
b. engaging a person in child-related work without them holding, or having applied for, a WWCC
c. providing false or misleading information in connection with a WWCC application
d. applicants and/or WWCC cardholders failing to notify screening agencies of relevant changes in circumstances
e. unauthorised disclosure of information gathered during the course of a WWCC.

State and territory governments should amend their WWCC laws to include a standard definition of criminal history, for WWCC purposes, comprised of:

a. convictions, whether or not spent
b. findings of guilt that did not result in a conviction being recorded as charges, regardless of status or outcome, including:

i. pending charges – that is, charges laid but not finalised
ii. charges disposed of by a court, or otherwise, other than by way of conviction (for example, withdrawn, set aside or dismissed)
iii. charges that led to acquittals or convictions that were quashed or otherwise over-turned on appeal

For all offences, irrespective of whether or not they concern the person’s history as an adult or a child and/or relate to offences outside Australia.

State and territory governments should amend their WWCC laws to:
a. require that relevant disciplinary and/or misconduct information is checked for all WWCC applicants
b. include a standard definition of disciplinary and/or misconduct information that encompasses disciplinary action and/or findings of misconduct where the conduct was against, or involved, a child, irrespective of whether this information arises from reportable conduct schemes or other systems or bodies responsible for disciplinary or misconduct proceedings
c. require the bodies responsible for the relevant disciplinary and/or misconduct information to notify their respective screening agencies of relevant disciplinary and/or misconduct information that meets the definition.

State and territory governments should amend their WWCC laws to respond to records in the same way, specifically that:
a. the absence of any relevant criminal history, disciplinary or misconduct information in an applicant’s history leads to an automatic grant of a WWCC
b. any conviction and/or pending charge in an applicant’s criminal history for the following categories of offence leads to an automatic WWCC refusal, provided the applicant was at least 18 years old at the time of the offence:
i. murder of a child
ii. manslaughter of a child
iii. indecent or sexual assault of a child
iv. child pornography–related offences
v. incest where the victim was a child
vi. abduction or kidnapping of a child
vii. animal-related sexual offences.
c. all other relevant criminal, disciplinary or misconduct information should trigger an assessment of the person’s suitability for a WWCC (consistent with the risk assessment factors set out below).

State and territory governments should amend their WWCC laws to specify that relevant criminal records for the purposes of recommendation 20(c) include but are not limited to the following:

a. juvenile records and/or non-conviction charges for the offence categories specified in recommendation 20(b)
b. sexual offences, regardless of whether the victim was a child and including offences not already covered in recommendation 20(b)
c. violent offences, including assaults, arson and other fire-related offences, regardless of whether the victim was a child and including offences not already covered in recommendation 20(b)
d. child welfare offences
e. offences involving cruelty to animals
f. drug offences.

State and territory governments should amend their WWCC laws to specify that the criteria for assessing risks to children include:

a. the nature, gravity and circumstances of the offence and/or misconduct, and how this is relevant to children or child-related work
b. the length of time that has passed since the offence and/or misconduct occurred
c. the age of the child
d. the age difference between the person and the child
e. the person’s criminal and/or disciplinary history, including whether there is a pattern of concerning conduct
f. all other relevant circumstances in respect of their history and the impact on their suitability to be engaged in child-related work.

State and territory governments should amend their WWCC laws to permit WWCC applicants to begin child-related work before the outcome of their application is determined, provided the safeguards listed below are introduced.

Applicants
a. applicants must submit a WWCC application to the appropriate screening agency before beginning child-related work and not withdraw the application while engaging in child-related work
b. applicants must provide a WWCC application receipt to their employers before beginning child-related work.

Other safeguards
c. employers must cite application receipts, record application numbers and verify applications with the relevant screening agency
d. there must be capacity to impose interim bars on applicants where records are identified that may indicate a risk and require further assessment.

All state and territory governments should ensure that any person the subject of an adverse WWCC decision can appeal to a body independent of the WWCC screening agency, but within the same jurisdiction, for a review of the decision, except persons who have been convicted of one of the following categories of offences:

• murder of a child
• indecent or sexual assault of a child
• child pornography-related offences
• incest where the victim was a child
and
a. received a sentence of full time custody for the conviction, such persons being permanently excluded from an appeal
or
b. by virtue of that conviction, the person is subject to an order that imposes any control on the person’s conduct or movement, or excludes the person from working with children, such persons being excluded from an appeal for the duration of that order.

Subject to the commencement of continuous monitoring of national criminal history records, state and territory governments should amend their WWCC laws to specify that:

a. WWCCs are valid for five years
b. employers and WWCC cardholders engaged in child-related work must inform the screening agency when a person commences or ceases being engaged in specific child-related work
c. screening agencies are required to notify a person’s employer of any change in the person’s WWCC status.

The Commonwealth, state and territory governments should:

a. through COAG, or a relevant ministerial council, adopt the standards and set a timeframe within which all jurisdictions must report back to COAG, or a relevant ministerial council, on implementation
b. establish a process whereby changes to the standards or to state and territory schemes need to be agreed to by COAG, or a relevant ministerial council, and must be adopted across all jurisdictions.

1

Redress

2

Redress

a. direct personal response
b. counselling and psychological care
c. monetary payments.

3

Redress

4

Redress

Any institution or redress scheme that offers or provides any element of redress should do so in accordance with the following principles:

a. Redress should be survivor focused.
b. There should be a ‘no wrong door’ approach for survivors in gaining access to redress.
c. All redress should be offered, assessed and provided with appropriate regard to what is known about the nature and impact of child sexual abuse – and institutional child sexual abuse in particular – and to the cultural needs of survivors.
d. All redress should be offered, assessed and provided with appropriate regard to the needs of particularly vulnerable survivors.

5

Redress

Institutions should offer and provide a direct personal response to survivors in accordance
with the following principles:

a. Re-engagement between a survivor and an institution should only occur if, and to the extent that, a survivor desires it.
b. Institutions should make clear what they are willing to offer and provide by way of direct personal response to survivors of institutional child sexual abuse. Institutions should ensure that they are able to provide the direct personal
response they offer to survivors.
c. At a minimum, all institutions should offer and provide on request by a survivor:

i. an apology from the institution
ii. the opportunity to meet with a senior institutional representative and receive an acknowledgement of the abuse and its impact on them
iii. an assurance or undertaking from the institution that it has taken, or will take, steps to protect against further abuse of children in that institution.

d. In offering direct personal responses, institutions should try to be responsive to survivors’ needs.
e. Institutions that already offer a broader range of direct personal responses to survivors and others should consider continuing to offer those forms of direct personal response.
f. Direct personal responses should be delivered by people who have received some training about the nature and impact of child sexual abuse and the needs of survivors, including cultural awareness and sensitivity training where relevant.
g. Institutions should welcome feedback from survivors about the direct personal response they offer and provide.

6

Redress

7

Redress

8

Redress

9

Redress

Counselling and psychological care should be supported through redress in accordance with
the following principles:

a. Counselling and psychological care should be available throughout a survivor’s life.
b. Counselling and psychological care should be available on an episodic basis.
c. Survivors should be allowed flexibility and choice in relation to counselling and psychological care.
d. There should be no fixed limits on the counselling and psychological care provided to a survivor.
e. Without limiting survivor choice, counselling and psychological care should be provided by practitioners with appropriate capabilities to work with clients with complex trauma.
f. Treating practitioners should be required to conduct ongoing assessment and review to ensure treatment is necessary and effective. If those who fund counselling and psychological care through redress have concerns about services provided by a particular practitioner, they should negotiate a process of external review with that practitioner and the survivor. Any process of assessment and review should be designed to ensure it causes no harm to the survivor.
g. Counselling and psychological care should be provided to a survivor’s family members if necessary for the survivor’s treatment.

10

Redress

To facilitate the provision of counselling and psychological care by practitioners with appropriate capabilities to work with clients with complex trauma:

a. the Australian Psychological Society should lead work to design and implement a public register to enable identification of practitioners with appropriate capabilities to work with clients with complex trauma
b. the public register and the process to identify practitioners with appropriate
capabilities to work with clients with complex trauma should be designed and implemented by a group that includes representatives of the Australian Psychological Society, the Australian Association of Social Workers, the Royal
Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists, Adults Surviving Child Abuse, a specialist sexual assault service, and a non-government organisation with a suitable understanding of the counselling and psychological care needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander survivors
c. the funding for counselling and psychological care under redress should be used to provide financial support for the public register if required
d. those who operate a redress scheme should ensure that information about the public register is made available to survivors who seek counselling and psychological care through the redress scheme.

11

Redress

Those who administer support for counselling and psychological care through redress should ensure that counselling and psychological care are supported through redress in accordance with the following principles:

a. Counselling and psychological care provided through redress should supplement, and not compete with, existing services.
b. Redress should provide funding for counselling and psychological care services and should not itself provide counselling and psychological care services.
c. Redress should fund counselling and psychological care as needed by survivors rather than providing a lump sum payment to survivors for their future counselling and psychological care needs.

12

Redress

13

Redress

14

Redress

The funding obtained through redress to ensure that survivors’ needs for counselling and psychological care are met should be used to fund measures that help to meet those needs, including:

a. measures to improve survivors’ access to Medicare by:

i. funding case management style support to help survivors to understand what is available through the Better Access initiative and Access to Allied Psychological Services and why a GP diagnosis and referral is needed
ii. maintaining a list of GPs who have mental health training, are familiar with the existence of the redress scheme and are willing to be recommended to survivors as providers of GP services, including referrals, in relation to counselling and psychological care
iii. supporting the establishment and use of the public register that provides details of practitioners who have been identified as having appropriate capabilities to treat survivors and who are registered practitioners for Medicare purposes

b. providing funding to supplement existing services provided by state-funded specialist services to increase the availability of services and reduce waiting times for survivors
c. measures to address gaps in expertise and geographical and cultural gaps by:

i. supporting the establishment and promotion of the public register that provides details of practitioners who have been identified as having appropriate capabilities to treat survivors
ii. funding training in cultural awareness for practitioners who have the capabilities to work with survivors but have not had the necessary training or experience in working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander survivors
iii. funding rural and remote practitioners, or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander practitioners, to obtain appropriate capabilities to work with survivors
iv. providing funding to facilitate regional and remote visits to assist in establishing therapeutic relationships; these could then be maintained largely by online or telephone counselling. There could be the potential to fund additional visits if required from time to time

d. providing funding for counselling and psychological care for survivors whose needs for counselling and psychological care cannot otherwise be met, including by paying reasonable gap fees charged by practitioners if survivors are unable to afford these fees.

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Those establishing a redress scheme should commission further work to develop this matrix and the detailed assessment procedures and guidelines required to implement it:

a. in accordance with our discussion of the factors
b. taking into account expert advice in relation to institutional child sexual abuse, including child development, medical, psychological, social and legal perspectives
c. with the benefit of actuarial advice in relation to the actuarial modelling on which the level and spread of monetary payments and funding expectations are based.

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The appropriate level of monetary payments under redress should be:

a. a minimum payment of $10,000
b. a maximum payment of $200,000 for the most severe case
c. an average payment of $65,000.

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The amount of the monetary payments that a survivor has already received for institutional child sexual abuse should be determined as follows:

a. monetary payments already received should be counted on a gross basis, including any amount the survivor paid to reimburse Medicare or in legal fees
b. no account should be taken of the cost of providing any services to the survivor, such as counselling services
c. any uncertainty as to whether a payment already received related to the same abuse for which the survivor seeks a monetary payment through redress should be resolved in the survivor’s favour.

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The national redress advisory council should include representatives:

a. of survivor advocacy and support groups
b. of non-government institutions, particularly those that are expected to be required to respond to a significant number of claims for redress
c. with expertise in issues affecting survivors with disabilities
d. with expertise in issues of particular importance to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander survivors
e. with expertise in psychological and legal issues relevant to survivors
f. with any other expertise that may assist in advising on the establishment and operation of the redress scheme or schemes.

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For any application for redress made to a redress scheme, the cost of redress in respect of the application should be:

a. a proportionate share of the cost of administration of the scheme
b. if the applicant is determined to be eligible, the cost of any contribution for counselling and psychological care in respect of the applicant
c. if the applicant is determined to be eligible, the cost of any monetary payment to be made to the applicant.

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The redress scheme or schemes should be funded as much as possible in accordance with
the following principles:

a. The institution in which the abuse is alleged or accepted to have occurred should fund the cost of redress.
b. Where an applicant alleges or is accepted to have experienced abuse in more than one institution, the redress scheme or schemes should apportion the cost of funding redress between the relevant institutions, taking account of the relative severity of the abuse in each institution and any other features relevant to calculating a monetary payment.
c. Where the institution in which the abuse is alleged or accepted to have occurred no longer exists but the institution was part of a larger group of institutions or where there is a successor to the institution, the group of institutions or the successor institution should fund the cost of redress.

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The trust fund, or each trust fund, should be governed by a corporate trustee with a board of directors appointed by the government that establishes the relevant redress scheme. The board or each board should include:

a. an independent Chair
b. a representative of: government; non-government institutions; survivor advocacy and support groups; and the redress scheme
c. those with any other expertise that is desired at board level to direct the trust.

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Child sexual abuse should be taken to have occurred in an institutional context in the following circumstances:

a. it happens:

i. on premises of an institution
ii. where activities of an institution take place or
iii. in connection with the activities of an institution in circumstances where the institution is, or should be treated as being, responsible for the contact between the abuser and the applicant that resulted in the abuse being committed

b. it is engaged in by an official of an institution in circumstances (including circumstances that involve settings not directly controlled by the institution) where the institution has, or its activities have, created, facilitated, increased, or
in any way contributed to (whether by act or omission) the risk of abuse or the circumstances or conditions giving rise to that risk
c. it happens in any other circumstances where the institution is, or should be treated as being, responsible for the adult abuser having contact with the applicant.

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A redress scheme should have no fixed closing date. But, when applications to the scheme reduce to a level where it would be reasonable to consider closing the scheme, those who operate the redress scheme should consider specifying a closing date for the scheme. The closing date should be at least 12 months into the future. Those who
operate the redress scheme should ensure that the closing date is given widespread publicity until the scheme closes.

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The redress scheme should consider adopting particular communication strategies for people who might be more difficult to reach, including:

a. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
b. people with disability
c. culturally and linguistically diverse communities
d. regional and remote communities
e. people with mental health difficulties
f. people who are experiencing homelessness
g. people in correctional or detention centres
h. children and young people
i. people with low levels of literacy
j. survivors now living overseas.

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A redress scheme should take the following steps to improve transparency and accountability:

a. In addition to publicising and promoting the availability of the scheme, the scheme’s processes and time frames should be as transparent as possible. The scheme should provide up-to-date information on its website and through any funded counselling and support services and community legal centres, other relevant support services and relevant institutions.
b. If possible, the scheme should ensure that each applicant is allocated to a particular contact officer who they can speak to if they have any queries about the status of their application or the timing of its determination and so on.
c. The scheme should operate a complaints mechanism and should welcome any complaints or feedback from applicants and others involved in the scheme (for example, support services and community legal centres).
d. The scheme should provide any feedback it receives about common problems that have been experienced with applications or institutions’ responses to funded counselling and support services and community legal centres, other relevant support services and relevant institutions. It should include any suggestions on
how to improve applications or responses or ensure more timely determinations.
e. The scheme should publish data, at least annually, about:

i. the number of applications received
ii. the institutions to which the applications relate
iii. the periods of alleged abuse
iv. the number of applications determined
v. the outcome of applications
vi. the mean, median and spread of payments offered
vii. the mean, median and spread of time taken to determine the application
viii. the number and outcome of applications for review

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Institutions should seek to achieve independence in institutional redress processes by taking the following steps:

a. Institutions should provide information on the application process, including online, so that survivors do not need to approach the institution if there is an independent person with whom they can make their claim.
b. If feasible, the process of receiving and determining claims should be administered independently of the institution to minimise the risk of any appearance that the institution can influence the process or decisions.
c. Institutions should ensure that anyone they engage to handle or determine redress claims is appropriately trained in understanding child sexual abuse and its impacts and in any relevant cultural awareness issues.
d. Institutions should ensure that any processes or interactions with survivors are respectful and empathetic, including by taking into account the factors discussed in Chapter 5 concerning meetings and meeting environments.
e. Processes and interactions should not be legalistic. Any legal, medical and other relevant input should be obtained for the purposes of decision making.

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If a survivor alleges abuse in more than one institution, the institution to which the survivor applies for redress should adopt the following process:

a. With the survivor’s consent, the institution’s redress process should approach the other named institutions to seek cooperation on the claim.
b. If the survivor consents and the relevant institutions agree, one institutional process should assess the survivor’s claim in accordance with the recommended redress elements and processes (with any necessary modifications because of the absence of a government-run scheme) and allocate contributions between the institutions.
c. If any institution no longer exists and has no successor, its share should be met by the other institution or institutions.

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The non-delegable duty should apply to institutions that operate the following facilities or provide the following services and be owed to children who are in the care, supervision or control of the institution in relation to the relevant facility or service:

a. residential facilities for children, including residential out-of-home care facilities and juvenile detention centres but not including foster care or kinship care
b. day and boarding schools and early childhood education and care services, including long day care, family day care, outside school hours services and preschool programs
c. disability services for children
d. health services for children
e. any other facility operated for profit which provides services for children that involve the facility having the care, supervision or control of children for a period of time but not including foster care or kinship care
f. any facilities or services operated or provided by religious organisations, including activities or services provided by religious leaders, officers or personnel of religious organisations but not including foster care or kinship care.

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State and territory governments should introduce legislation to provide that, where a survivor wishes to commence proceedings for damages in respect of institutional child sexual abuse where the institution is alleged to be an institution with which a property trust is associated, then unless the institution nominates a proper defendant to sue that has sufficient assets to meet any liability arising from the proceedings:

a. the property trust is a proper defendant to the litigation
b. any liability of the institution with which the property trust is associated that arises from the proceedings can be met from the assets of the trust.

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Institutions and survivor advocacy and support groups that adopt a policy that they will not report the survivor’s details without the survivor’s consent should make a blind report to police in preference to making no report at all.

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State and territory governments should ensure that, as far as reasonably practicable, special measures to assist victims of child sexual abuse offences to give evidence in prosecutions are available for victims when they give a victim impact statement, if they wish to use them.

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