Child Safety Policy

Purpose: To ensure that a caring and appropriate response is taken in relation to known or suspected child abuse within the Orange Sky community.

Scope: This policy applies to all members of the Orange Sky family, namely board members, employees, volunteers and contractors.

Our Commitment

Orange Sky is committed to providing a safe and secure environment for all people accessing our services, including children (under the age of 18 years). All children who access Orange Sky’s services have a right to feel safe and participate in an environment where they are cared for and respected. We aim to reduce the risk of child abuse occurring within the Orange Sky community, and ensure that a caring and appropriate response is taken should abuse become known to a member of the Orange Sky family.

Defining Child Abuse and Neglect

Child abuse and neglect refers to any behaviour by parents, caregivers, other adults or older adolescents that is outside the norms of conduct and entails a substantial risk of causing physical or emotional harm to a child or young person.
Child maltreatment is commonly divided into five subtypes:

• physical abuse;
• emotional maltreatment;
• neglect;
• sexual abuse; and
• the witnessing of family violence.

Reporting Child Safety Issues

If you become concerned that a child accessing an Orange Sky service is being abused or neglected, or is likely to be abused or neglected, and there is no parent able and willing to protect the child from harm, you should report your suspicions via the Orange Sky incident reporting process AND to the relevant authorities below.

Australian Capital Territory

Reporting authority

Office for Children, Youth and Family Support
General enquiries Ph: 13 22 81
Mandated reporters Ph: 1300 556 729

New South Wales

Reporting authority

Department of Family and Community Services
Ph: (02) 9716 2222

Further services

Child Protection Helpline
Ph: 13 21 11

Northern Territory

Reporting authority

Territory Families
Ph: (08) 8922 7111

Further services

Child Protection Hotline
Ph: 1800 700 250

Queensland

Reporting authority

Department of Communities Child Safety and Disability Services
Ph: (07) 3224 8045 To locate your nearest

Child Safety Service Centre
Ph: 1800 811 810

Child Safety After Hours Service Centre
Ph: 1800 177 135

South Australia

Reporting authority

Department for Education and Child Development Ph: (08) 8124 4185 Child Abuse Report Line
Ph: 13 14 78
After hours crisis care
Ph: 13 16 11

Tasmania

Reporting authority

Department of Health and Human Services
Ph: 1300 135 513
24 hour number: 1300 737 639

Victoria

Reporting authority

Department of Human Services
For regional and metropolitan phone numbers, go to: http://www.dhs.vic.gov.au/
After Hours Child Protection Crisis Line
Ph: 13 12 78

Western Australia

Reporting authority 

Department for Child Protection and Family Support
Ph: (08) 9222 2555
After hours: Ph: (08) 9223 1111

Mandatory Reporting

Mandatory reporting is the legal requirement to report suspected cases of child abuse and neglect. All jurisdictions throughout Australia possess mandatory reporting requirements. These reporting requirements differ from one jurisdiction to the other and it is every individual’s responsibility to know whether they are mandatory reporters and consult with their professional body to determine whether they are required to mandatory report while volunteering with Orange Sky. Visit the Australian Institute of Family Studies for more information: https://aifs.gov.au/cfca/