Child Safety

DOSCEL'sCommitment Statement to Child Safety affirms our commitment to:

• zero tolerance to child abuse
• listen to and empower children and young people
• keep children and young people safe.

Child Protection

Protection of children and young people is based upon the belief that each person is made in the image and likeness of God, and that the inherent dignity of all should be recognised and fostered.

DOSCEL is committed to child protection strategies and procedures to ensure the care, safety and protection of all children and young people in Catholic schools in the Diocese and safeguarding children and young people against sexual, physical, psychological and emotional abuse and/or neglect.

Victorian Child Safe Standards

DOSCEL is committed to complying with Ministreial Oder No.1359 Child Safe Standards - Managing the Risk of Child Abuse in Schools and School Boarding Premises, and following the Victorian Child Safe Standards.

Child Safety also considers the diversity of all children, including (but not limited to) the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, children with a disability, and children who are vulnerable.

On 1 July 2021, the Victorian Government announced that new Child Safe Standards to further strengthen child safe environments and protect children from abuse would be implemented.

On 31 January 2022, the Victorian Minister for Education made a new Ministerial Order under the Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (Vic.) Implementing the Child Safe Standards – Managing the Risk of Child Abuse in Schools and School Boarding Premises (Ministerial Order No. 1359).

Compliance with Ministerial Order No. 1359 will be a registration requirement for all Victorian schools and comes into effect on 1 July 2022. It will replace Ministerial Order No. 870 at this time.

Memorandum of Understanding: Protecting the safety and wellbeing of children and young people

The Department of Education and Training (DET), Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH), Family Safety Victoria, Catholic Education Commission Victoria Limited (CECV) and Independent Schools Victoria have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to replace the Joint Protocol ‘Protecting the safety and wellbeing of children and young people’.

The MOU provides clarity for roles and responsibilities, the sharing of information and reporting cases between schools, early childhood services, and Child Protection and Child and Family Information, Referral and Support Teams (Child FIRST / The Orange Door). The MOU also provides a process for resolving disputes and escalation mechanisms for issues, such as disagreements regarding responses to a report to Child Protection, or information sharing between the organisations.

Information Sharing Schemes

DOSCEL and its schools, Victorian government, non-government schools and centre-based education and care services, such as long day care, kindergarten and outside school hours care services, are prescribed as Information Sharing Entities (ISE) under the Child Information Sharing Scheme and the Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme.

Schools and services have an expanded ability to collaborate and share confidential information with other authorised professionals to promote the wellbeing and safety of children and to assess or manage family violence risk.  

DOSCEL and its schools are also Family Violence Multi-Agency Risk Assessment and Management Framework (MARAM) organisations and are required to align to MARAM over time.

Prevention and Response

Preventing and responding to child abuse requires a whole of community response to bring about broad cultural change. To this end, the Victorian Child Safe Standards apply to a broad range of organisations that provide services for children, including schools, churches, sporting clubs and youth services.

Ensuring we have child safe communities goes to the heart of our faith and core purpose. Therefore, we are dedicated to upholding the values and practices that create safe learning environments for students.

Reporting and Contacts

There are a number of supports available when responding to incidents, disclosures or suspicions of child abuse. 

Diocese of Sale Catholic Education Limited

24 Hour Services

Other Services

Policies