ECP303 Liana Baviello

ECP303 ASSIGNMENT 1

Student name: Liana Baviello

Student number: 214101563

Unit: ECP303 Child Protection

Unit Chair: Nicole Downes

Assignment: 1 individual report

 Child Safe Policy Template
In 2016, the Victorian government introduced mandatory child safe standards in order to
improve the safety of Victorian children. For this task you will be required to create your own
child safe policy drawing on unit materials. Using the template below, please answer the
questions in relation to your field of study, as it reflects child safety standards. While this is a
policy document, it is also an academic assignment so you will need to reference throughout
the policy, just as you would any other essay. Due to the limited word count for this task, the
sections in bold have been completed for you (these will not be counted towards the word
count). You may use this template to complete your answers to each question.
*The word count per section is just a suggestion

Please identify your Faculty here: Education/teaching

Child Safe Policy (Skyhigh Primary School)

(Child Safe Standard 2)
This policy was written to demonstrate the strong commitment of the management,
staff and volunteers to child safety and to provide an outline of the policies and
practices we have developed to keep everyone safe from any harm, including abuse.

1. Promoting the cultural safety of Aboriginal children is the first principle as abuse
may be heightened due to their pasts and may not feel safe. The second principle
is cultural safety for children from a culturally and/or linguistically diverse
background, ensuring that organisations are culturally aware about the risks these
children have faced. The last principle is about children with a disability which is
important as they have the rights and responsibilities as the rest of the community
(Paraphrased from; DHS 2015a, p.9).

In sum, the 7 standards for Victoria are: (DHS 2015a, p.9)

Effective strategies to promote an organisational culture of child safety
through leadership arrangements.
Commitment to child safety through a policy or statement.
Clear expectations of appropriate behaviour with children which is created
by a code of conduct.
Reducing the risk of child abuse through new and existing personnel by
screening, supervision and training.
The processes used for responding to and reporting suspected child abuse.
The ways to identify and reduce/eliminate risks of child abuse.
The strategies used to promote childrens participation and empowerment.
Commitment to child safety
(Child Safe Standard 1 & 4)
All children have a right to feel and be safe. The welfare of the children in our care
will always be our first priority and we have a zero tolerance of child abuse. We aim
to create a child safe and child friendly environment where children feel secure.

This policy was developed in collaboration with all our staff, volunteers and the
children who use our services and their parents. It applies to all staff, volunteers,
children and individuals involved in our organisation.
We recognise the significant impact of trauma on childrens wellbeing and
development, and aim to both prevent abuse from occurring and support children
who have suffered trauma.

2.
a) Trauma can be defined as an experience when the childs inner resources are
overwhelmed by a perceived or actual external threat (CSC 2007, p.35). A
reaction then occurs which triggers a fight, flight or even freeze response which
can cause long term damage. Some examples of traumatic experiences include;
physical/sexual abuse, neglect, domestic violence and emotional abuse. It is
important to be supportive and understanding to those who are traumatized so that
they can feel safe and protected again.

b) It is important to realize that children need stable, sensitive, loving, stimulating

relationships and environments in order to reach their full potential (DHSa 2015).
A traumatic child can isolate themselves from the rest of the class including group
activities due to reasons that may include; lack of empathy, anxiety and
behavioural factors. Their social skills may hinder as it may be harder to
communicate and form friendships therefore allowing the child to feel more
excluded and wanting to avoid others. Premature babies, or those with low birth
weights, or a chemical dependency, will generally take longer to reach
developmental milestones (DHSa 2015). As the children grow older, emotional
outbursts in other people can cause distress, they will not be able to trust many
people and may even be abused again. Furthermore, traumatised children may also
not realise their emotions and how they actually feel in certain situations, they
could lash out due to them feeling they have no control of their emotions. They
break rules, damage property and struggle to find explanations for their behaviour
(Briggs 2012, p. 73) because they dont understand peoples feelings. They may
also not be able to cope with their own emotions, making them feel like they dont
belong in the world.

c) The childs capacity to learn and achieve in school is influenced by the neural
writing that takes place in the early years. (Briggs 2012, p. 73). If the
connection between neurons and their networks are not formed, then attention
could be affected. These children may not be able to concentrate for long periods
of time, have short term memory loss or stress, resulting in the children not being
able to fulfil activities. They will struggle to hold large bits of information and
process them more slowly as their flashbacks/memories can overwhelm them.
Disturbance of sleep can heavily impact on learning as in class they will not be
able to concentrate properly. Children who sleep poorly do less well at school
than their rested peers (CSC 2007, p. 12). This is because children may be too
frightened to fall asleep or other children may have sleepless nights also due to
memories/dreams.
Childrens rights to safety and participation
(Child Safe Standard 7)
We teach children about what they can do if they feel unsafe. We listen to and act on
any concerns children, or their parents, raise with us.

We encourage children to express their views. We listen to their suggestions, especially

on matters that directly affect them. We actively encourage all children who use our
services to have a say about things that are important to them.

3.
 a) Article 27: Children have the right to a standard of living that is good enough
to meet their physical and mental needs. The government should help families
who cannot afford to provide this. (UNICEF n.d.)

Article 12: Children have the right to say what they think should happen
when adults are making decisions that affect them and to have their opinions
taken into account. (UNICEF n.d.).
Valuing diversity

We value diversity and do not tolerate any discriminatory practices. To achieve this
we:

promote the cultural safety, participation and empowerment of Aboriginal children

and their families

promote the cultural safety, participation and empowerment of children from

culturally and/or linguistically diverse backgrounds and their families

welcome children with a disability and their families and act to promote their
participation

seek appropriate staff from diverse cultural backgrounds.

Recruiting staff and volunteers

We apply the best practice standards in the recruitment and screening of staff and
volunteers. We interview and conduct referee checks on all staff and volunteers and
require police checks and Working with Children Checks for relevant positions. Our
commitment to Child Safety and our screening requirements are included in all
advertisements.
Supporting staff and volunteers
(Child Safe Standard 3)
We seek to attract and retain the best staff and volunteers. We provide support and
supervision so people feel valued, respected and fairly treated. We have developed a
Code of Conduct to provide guidance to our staff and volunteers, all of whom receive
training on the requirements of the Code.

4.
a) A Code of Conduct is probably the most effective child protection strategies
that helps children stay safe and away from harm. It spells out professional
boundaries, ethical behaviour and acceptable and unacceptable relationships
(Commission for Children and Young 2015p. 26). Organisations can take
action against people if they behave inappropriately and a discussion with
them should be undertaken. The Code of Conduct is put into place so that
everyone has a good understanding of the principles and standards in the
organisation, reflecting their practices that they provide.

In schools, a Code of Conduct is a way of promoting child safety and setting

expectations so that the whole school community including volunteers can
understand what is acceptable and whats not. The VIT Code of Conduct is
also linked to the Code of Ethics, with a particular focus on integrity, respect
and responsibility. One of the main purposes is to provide a set of principles
which will guide teachers in their everyday conduct and assist them to solve
 ethical dilemmas (VIT 2015). This allows the school community to have the
same expectations for each other, ensuring that all children are protected.

b) Staff should
Abide by our Child Policy and other practices that have the same goal
of child protection. Ensure that everyone is on the same page and all
staff and volunteers understand the policies and strategies the school
have created.
Treat everyone with respect and acknowledge different cultural,
religious and political backgrounds. It is important to be inclusive and
model this behaviour so that children can be also taught to respect
each other too.
Create a safe yet fun and challenging learning environments for
children. Learning should be a fun yet challenging experience so in
order to do that, the classroom should be safe and all students should
feel like they belong.
Communicate appropriately and effectively so that all students feel
comfortable to share their opinions and suggest matters that would
help our learning experiences.
Staff should NOT
Use prejudice or discriminate children based on gender, age, race or
culture.
Have personal conversations with the student using electronics devices
without real consent. No special relationships should be formed and
no favouritism should be shown.
Ignore signs of abuse. If there are suspicions or concerns, they should
be taken seriously so that the child is protected.
Have any physical contact with children without a valid reason. If a
child is capable of doing something on their own (e.g changing
clothes) then it is unnecessary for an adult to be helping.

Our process for reporting a child safety concern is outlined below:

5.
a) If a teacher in a school believes that a child needs protection against physical or
sexual abuse, they are expected to make a report based on reasonable grounds. It
doesnt matter whether the person is mandated or not, if a belief has formed about
a student in harm, then a report should be made as soon as possible. There are
many people involved within a school community and everyone of those people
still have a duty of care to ensure that all children are safe and what to do if they
arent. School staff also have the responsibility to act as a supporting person for
students, attending Child Protection case plan meetings, observing and monitoring
students behaviour and liaising with professionals (DEECD & DHS p.23).
Teachers should also be able to discuss any concerns or issues they have about the
safety of children with their principal or school leadership team so that each child
is protected.

b) One of the first things a mandatory reporter should do to make a report should
make contact with the Department of Health and Human Services focusing on
child protection. If other school professionals who believe that a child is in need of
protection or displays sexual abuse manners, they should contact Child Protection.
The professional needs to think about if they have reasonable grounds to report and
 ensure that a child is in need of protection after becoming aware that a child or
young persons health, safety or wellbeing is at risk (DEECD & DHS p.14). A
report should be made if a student disclosures information saying that they have
experienced physical or sexual abuse or if they know someone who has.
Professionals should pay attention to any signs of abuse that a child may show, or
if someone else knows about a child who is being abused. As teachers, we have
the duty of care to ensure all children are protected and safe. If they believe a child
is not, then immediate action needs to take place.

c) If non mandated people have beliefs that a child needs protection, they are
expected to still report it to Child Protection, still ensuring that their beliefs are on
reasonable grounds. It is a legal obligation for any adult who has an appropriate
belief that a child (under 16 years of age) is being sexually abused to contact the
police and report the issue. Failure to report a child sexual abuse case may result
in the person being prosecuted and a court imposing a fine under the CYFA
(section 184(1)). (DEECD & DHS 2010). Another criminal offence is failure to
protect a child from sexual abuse when they know they couldve helped.
Professionals who are under the care or supervision of a child under 16 have the
responsibilities to make a reporting when they know the risk of abuse and can help
reduce or entirely remove the risk of abuse but dont do it. Grooming is a newer
yet still just as serious offence that professionals need to be aware of to protect a
child. It is a crime when an adult communicates to a child under 16 years, or with
a professional/someone who is under care of a child with the goal of involving the
child in sexual behaviours such as penetration of a child. As non mandated to
report professionals, it is their expectations to ensure that these offences dont
occur and continue to promote child safety.

d)
ChildFIRST reporting pathway
If there are concerns that a child and their
family are in need of a referral to
ChildFIRST.
Child Protection reporting pathway
If there are concerns that a child is in need
of protection right away, or if you believe
that a child is significantly at harm.

If there are great concerns that a child and If a belief has been formed that the child
their family need family services to help has already been in danger or us at risk of
them, contact ChildFIRST. serious harm.

If there is doubt that the childs parents can

protect the child and keep them safe, then
report it to Child Protection.
*Paraphrased from DEECD & DHS (2010).
Identifying Abuse and Risk Management
(Child Safe Standards 4 & 6)
We recognise the importance of identifying abuse and adopting a risk management
approach to minimising the potential for child abuse or harm to occur and use this to
inform our policy, procedures and activity planning.

6. a. Staff training especially for signs of abuse is such an important thing to do to

ensure that all children can be protected. Having staff that are trained properly and
follow procedures strongly helps to reduce child abuse. This should happen by
engaging various recruitment tools, and providing staff and volunteers with
appropriate training and supervision to minimise the risk of child abuse (DHS
 2015b). One of the first things to do with new staff/volunteers is to get them to
understand why child safety is so important and familiarise themselves with the
policies and procedures that the school has. This will allow these new staff to help
minimise the risks and signs of child abuse, therefore creating a safer environment
for both the staff and students. Staff training is also beneficial so that they have a
good understanding of indicators of all forms of child maltreatment including
indicators in childrens drawings and how to handle childrens problematic
sexual behaviours (Briggs 2012, p. 66). The earlier the detection the better it is
and so staff training is there to help everyone recognise the signs of abuse so that
all children can be safe again.

b.

Physical indicators Behavioural indicators

Physical abuse Bruises Extremely fearful of a
Burns parent or other adults.
Fractures/broken bones Startles or flinches with
sudden movement.
Continuous unexplained
absences or lateness to
school.
Sexual abuse Bruises or bleeding from Interested in sexual
genital, vaginal or anal matters.
area. Knows about sexual
Underwear stained with behaviour that is
blood. inappropriate.
Discomfort in urinating Fear of some places e.g
or defecating. bathroom
Pain, itching or Sexually explicit drawings
discomfort in anal or or descriptions
genital area.
Emotional Depression Low self esteem
abuse Stress Poor relationships with
Bed wetting or bed their peers/withdrawal
soiling, not caused my symptoms
medical conditions Highly anxious
Neglect Lack of personal Constant absences/lateness
hygiene to school
Always hungry Fatigue (falling asleep in
Poor medical or dental class)
care Looking/stealing food
*Paraphrased from: Briggs (2012 ch.3) and Department of Health and Human Services
(2015a)
Reviewing this policy
(Child Safe Standard 1)
7. Drawing from the child safe standard 1, Skyhigh Primary School will review this
policy every year to ensure that everyone understands our vision and strategies for
child abuse. Meetings can take place every 6 months to a year with the key goal of
protecting the children from harm. We will also partner with parents and the
community to help create a safer environment for children by promoting child
 safety at events.

References

Briggs, F 2012, Child protection: the essential guide for teachers and other professionals
whose work involves children, Docklands, Vic.: JoJo Publishing, 2012.

CSC see Child Safety Commissioner

Child Safety Commissioner 2007, Calmer classrooms a guide to working with traumatized
children, Victoria, retrieved 3 August 2016,
http://www.ccyp.vic.gov.au/childsafetycommissioner/downloads/calmer_classrooms.pdf

Commission for Children and Young People 2015, A guide for creating a child safe
organisation, Victoria State Government, retrieved 3 August 2016,
http://www.ccyp.vic.gov.au/downloads/creating-a-childsafe-organisation-guide.pdf

DEECD and DHS see Department of Education and Early Childhood Development &
Department of Human Services

Department of Education and Early Childhood Development & Department of Human

Services 2010, Protecting the safety and wellbeing of children and young people, DEECD &
DHS, retrieved 6 August 2016,
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/documents/school/principals/spag/safety/protectionofchildre
n.pdf

DHS see Department of Health and Human Services

Department of Human Services 2015a, An overview of the Victorian child safe standards,
DHS, retrieved 5 August 2016, http://www.dhs.vic.gov.au/about-the-department/documents-
and-resources/policies,-guidelines-and-legislation/child-safe-standards#content-heading-0.

-------- 2015b, Child development and trauma guide, DHS, retrieved 6 August 2016,
http://www.dhs.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/586167/child-development-and-
trauma-guide-1_intro.pdf

UNICEF n.d., A simplified version of the United Nations convention on the rights of the child,
UNICEF, retrieved 5 August 2016, http://www.unicef.org.au/Upload/UNICEF/Media/Our
%20work/childfriendlycrc.pdf

VIT see Victorian Institute of Teaching.

Victorian Institute of Teaching 2015, The Victorian teaching profession code of conduct, VIT,
retrieved 5 August 2016, http://www.vit.vic.edu.au/media/documents/imported-
files/spl/Code-of-Conduct-2015.pdf.