Kamaruka takes a zero-tolerance approach to child abuse and is fully committed to ensuring that its strategies, policies, procedures and practices meet all Child Safety Standards as specified in Ministerial Order No. 1359 (2022)
Introduction for Staff and Parent/Caregivers: The Australian Human Rights Commission 2016 ‘Rights of the Child’ The Australian Government has promised to make sure that all children and young people growing up in Australia have these rights:
The Council of Europe: One in Five Campaign
The Council of Europe (CoE) launched the ONE in FIVE Campaign to stop sexual violence against children in Rome (Italy) in November 2010. Through the campaign, the CoE wished to empower governments, parliaments, professional networks, academia, business communities, civil society, parents, and children, enabling them to take the necessary steps to stop sexual violence against children. With a view to empowering children and parents, the CoE has developed an awareness raising tool, The Underwear Rule, which will help parents and carers to talk to children in a positive and child-friendly manner about their right to define their personal boundaries and to explain that children can talk with confidence about this subject to those who look after them. The empowerment tool has been widely welcomed and translated into all the EU languages. Empowering children to protect themselves and disclose abuse are the priority tasks of responsible adults, and there are no alternatives to these tasks. Understanding the risks that children face; empowering parents and teachers to identify them; knowing how to respond to them; improving social and community services that can be mobilised to provide specialist support; and ensuring ongoing monitoring and vigilance are all essential to the protection of children from sexual abuse. The last thing that children need is to have unnecessary boundaries and limits imposed on them. Intimidation leads to fear and isolation, which only increases the risk of victimisation. To empower children to recognise and react effectively to potentially dangerous situations, the key concept is that everyone has the right to safety. Once children recognise this, the more readily they will understand the need to respond.
Message to students about their right to be safe:
This information is important as it tells you some of the things you can do if someone is hurting you or your friends or making you feel unsafe and anxious.
It’s simple: you should not be touched by others on parts of the body usually covered by underwear and you should not touch others in those areas. This rule helps you to understand that your body belongs to you, and no one should touch it without permission. There is a difference between safe and unsafe touching and between good and bad touching Inappropriate and unsafe touching is wrong and against the law. If you are not sure whether someone else’s behaviour towards you is acceptable, you should ask a trusted adult for help.
All children need to know how to say No quickly and loudly to inappropriate touch, to Go away from the unsafe situation, and to Tell a trusted adult as soon as possible. Screaming, kicking and self-defence skills can be very useful as child abusers are usually scared of being caught. It is very important that you keep telling trusted adults until you feel listened to and believed, and can feel safe again.
All children need to know the difference between a bad secret and a good secret (a nice surprise). Secrecy is a main tactic of people who are child abusers. They might try anything from bribes (giving you stuff) to serious threats. Some children get confused about keeping secrets because they don’t want to ‘tell tales’ but every secret that makes you feel anxious, uncomfortable, fearful, or depressed is a bad secret. Bad secrets should never be kept but told straight away to an adult you can trust.
Some children, especially younger ones, don’t understand that someone who knows them or is part of their family could abuse or hurt them. There need to be strict rules for all children about telling trusted adults about anyone who gives them stuff, asks them to keep secrets, or tries to spend time alone with them.
All children should know about safety rules as child abusers may seem friendly and caring. They can be males or females, young or old. Never get into a car with anyone you don’t know, take money or gifts from them, or agree to go anywhere with them without your parents’ permission. If a stranger suggests any of these things, you must remember No! Go! Tell! Most strangers are not dangerous but if you meet one who might be, you need to get help from parents, teachers, policemen, people in shops, or families with children. Children should know about the tricks that kidnappers use, such as telling a child that their parents have had an accident and that they will take them to the hospital. They might say that your parents have told them to pick you up and drive you home and they might even know your name or your parent’s names. Never believe these kind of stories without first checking with a person you trust.
It’s very useful to choose a small group of people that you can trust and who will listen and help you when you have a problem or are worried about something. It’s best to have a safety network of one or two people who live with you and one or two people outside the family. Remember never to give up on finding help until the problem has been listened to and fixed and you feel safe again.
Adults at school will listen to your concerns and make sure that you don’t have to deal with these by yourself. Sometimes they may have to tell others about your concerns so that a solution can be found and you or your friend can be protected.
If you don’t feel comfortable about talking to anyone at school, you can talk to someone in your safety network: your parent or an aunt, uncle, a stepparent, a grandparent, or any other adult you can trust. Remember: you don’t need to deal with things on your own.
Visit eHeadspace (which provides an online and telephone support service) www.eheadspace.org.au or 1800 650 850.
Call KidsHelp Line on 1800 55 1800 Visit www.kidshelpline.com.au for 24-hour support
Call or visit your local police station or call 000.
EVALUATION
This policy will be reviewed as per our three-year review cycle or more often if necessary due to changes in regulations or circumstances.
| Approval date: | Approval by: | Next review: |
| Feb 2023 | School Board | Feb 2026 |
