All organisations falling within the scope
of the blue card system are required to develop and implement
child and youth risk management strategies which address
eight minimum requirements.
This video
will guide you through the fourth of the minimum requirements which is the
requirement to have policies and procedures for handling disclosures
or suspicions of harm, including reporting guidelines.
So, what is a disclosure of harm?
What is a suspicion of harm?
Well, a disclosure of harm occurs when someone,
including a child, tells you that harm has happened,
is happening, or is likely to happen to a child.
A suspicion of harm
is when someone has a reasonable suspicion that the child has suffered,
is suffering, or is it unacceptable risk
of suffering significant harm.
This includes circumstances
which relate to an unborn child which may be in need of protection
after he or she is born.
A child who has been or may be experiencing abuse
may show behavioural, emotional or physical signs
of stress and abuse.
There may also be
other circumstances where there is concern for a child's welfare
but it does not reach the threshold to be considered a reasonable suspicion of harm.
We will take you through how to address
all these types of circumstances in the latter part of this video.
Why do you need to have these policies and procedures?
Children and young people can only be protected from harm
if it is reported and dealt with quickly and effectively.
Therefore, your organisation must have policies and procedures in place
to ensure staff and volunteers respond as quickly as possible
to a disclosure or suspicion of harm.
A lack of formal policies and procedures
can impede the reporting of such matters.
So, how should you go about drafting the
content for this requirement?
When developing a policy in relation to handling disclosures or suspicions of harm,
you should include information about: i) defining harm,
ii) identifying harm, iii) managing and recording a disclosure or suspicion of harm,
iv) reporting a disclosure or suspicion of harm, and
v) reviewing policies and procedures following an incident.
First, we will look at defining and then identifying harm.
Harm is defined as
'any detrimental effect of a significant nature
on the child's physical, psychological or emotional wellbeing'.
Harm may arise from the following types of abusive behaviours:
i) physical abuse,
ii) emotional or psychological abuse,
iii) neglect,
and iv) sexual abuse or exploitation.
It is also important to remember that harm can be caused by a single
act or omission or a series of acts or omissions.
Your organisation should also include information about:
i) the signs to help identify if harm is occurring,
ii) what constitutes a disclosure of harm, and
iii) what constitutes a suspicion of harm.
The toolkit which is available on the "Risk Management" page of the Blue Card Services
website
provides useful materials, including a list of indicators of child abuse which will assist
you further.
Let's now look at managing and recording
a disclosure or suspicion of harm.
Your organisation should
document how staff and volunteers should receive a disclosure of harm from a child
or young person
or manage a suspicion of harm.
When receiving a
disclosure of harm, you may advise your staff that they should:
i) remain calm and listen attentively, actively and non-judgmentally,
ii) ensure there is a private place to talk,
iii) encourage the child to talk in their own words and
ensure that only open-ended questions are asked to act protectively,
iv) ensure that the child is advised that the disclosure
cannot remain a secret and that it is necessary to tell someone in order to get
help,
v) document the disclosure clearly and accurately,
vi) not attempt to mediate an outcome, and
vii) follow the appropriate process
in relation to reporting a disclosure of harm.
It is helpful to provide a template
to assist staff in recording a disclosure or suspicion
of harm.
When managing
a suspicion of harm or other concern for a child's welfare,
you may advise your staff and volunteers that they should:
i) remain alert to any warning signs or indicators,
ii) pay close attention to changes in the child's behaviour, ideas, feelings and the
words they use,
iii) make written notes of observations,
iv) assure a child that they can come to talk whenever they need to and
listen to them and believe them when they do,
v) follow any relevant process for reporting
a suspicion of harm to Child Safety
or the Police, or consider what support services could be offered to the
family if the concern does not meet the relevant threshold to make a report.
The toolkit which is available on the Blue Card Services website provides
further detailed information in relation to how to manage a disclosure
or suspicion of harm.
Your organisation should
also document clear policies in relation to reporting a disclosure
or suspicion of harm.
Your risk management strategy
should outline reporting requirements for all staff and volunteers.
Everyone
has a responsibility regarding child protection
and your policy should be clear about the circumstances
in which a report should be made to the police, for example,
where a child is at imminent risk of harm or a child has been the victim of a
criminal offence.
You should also ensure that you outline
any applicable legislative obligations to report matters to police
which apply to individuals working in your organisation.
You should also outline when a report should be made to Child Safety
in relation to a reasonable suspicion that a child may be in need of protection.
You should ensure that you specifically outline any mandatory reporting obligations
which apply to individuals working within your organisation.
People with mandatory reporting obligations
include doctors, registered nurses,
approved teachers employed at a school and police officers with child protection responsibilities.
These individuals must report to Child Safety
a reasonable suspicion that a child has suffered,
is suffering, or is at unacceptable risk of suffering significant harm
caused by physical or sexual abuse
and does not have a parent able and willing to protect the child from harm.
Another aspect which you should cover in your policies and procedures
should be when a non-mandatory reporter should report a reasonable suspicion
that a child has suffered, is suffering, or is at unacceptable risk
a suffering significant harm and does not have a parent
able and willing to protect the child from the harm.
Remember, a reasonable suspicion may be based on
either a disclosure of harm
or observing other signs of abuse.
You should also ensure that you outline timeframes
and relevant contact details for reporting a disclosure or suspicion of harm,
and ensure that there is a clear process for reporting within your organisation,
particularly where a disclosure is made concerning a person within your organisation.
You must also be sure to outline how to deal with
concerns for a child
that do not amount to a reasonable suspicion of harm
by considering what support services could be offered to the family.
For example, a Family and Child Connect service
can provide information and advice about connecting families with support services
and the circumstances in which a referral can and should be made to one of these services.
You should also ensure appropriate confidentiality is maintained in
relation to the issues
and any relevant documents.
Also ensure that you consider
any appropriate support or counselling which can be offered to the child or young person,
and
identify what supports are available for the person to whom the disclosure
was made.
Lastly, let's look at reviewing current policies and procedures.
You should undertake a review of the operation of your policies and
procedures
following a disclosure or suspicion of harm being actioned to
consider the application of the policies and whether there are
any necessary changes, and identify any additional training requirements.
To further assist you in developing and implementing
effective child and youth risk management strategies,
a toolkit, which is available on the "Risk Management" page of
the Blue Card Services website has been developed to provide
information and guidance on the eight minimum requirements.
Remember, safe service environments don't just happen.
They require ongoing planning, commitment
and maintenance.
Thank you for taking the time to learn about this requirement of
child and youth
risk management strategies.
We hope you found this video useful
and we encourage you to watch the remaining videos on offer
from the Blue Card Services Learning Portal.