Statement
The department is committed to the safety of children in all aspects of its work including in the delivery of the services it provides on behalf of the Australian Government. The Commonwealth Child Safe Framework (the Framework) sets minimum standards for creating and maintaining child safe culture and practices across Australian Government entities.
The department is compliant with the Framework. The department’s overarching risk rating for 2023–24 is low.
The department’s direct contact with children is limited and largely occurs through interaction with funded third-party organisations. Child safety obligations of departmental funded third parties are identified in grant opportunity guidelines, requests for tender, contracts, grant agreements, and other relevant grant and procurement documentation for activities that involve interaction with children.
Grantees are required to provide a child safe statement of compliance to the department annually. The compliance period for grantees with child safe clauses in their agreements is by calendar year (2023).
The department extends its commitment to child safety through:
- requiring third-party organisations to provide us with a statement of child safe compliance
- undertaking assurance activities including asking a sample of grantees (particularly those rated extreme or high risk) to describe how they have implemented their child safe measures
- requesting staff working for providers to present their Working with Children cards when department staff conduct site visits
- undertaking an annual risk assessment to identify and mitigate risks to children through any interactions they may have with us
- ensuring all staff undertake the department’s worker screening processes
- an internal communication campaign on child safety
- an annual review of key policies
- providing access to training relating to the Child Safe Framework to all staff.
The department is responsible for the administration of the National Redress Scheme for institutional child sexual abuse. During the 2023–2024 financial year, 16,324 applications, representing all applications received, were screened against Child Safe Reporting protocols, with 290 matters referred to jurisdictions.