Image: Lilijana Nicholls, Ministerial Youth Advisory Council (MYAC); Catrina Luz Aniere OAM, Millenium Kids CEO; Bevan Warner, Ombudsman Western Australia; Jessica Stojkovski, Hon. Minister for Child Protection; Jacqueline McGowan-Jones, Commissioner for Children and Young People; Mike Rowe, Department of Communities Director General; MYAC Co-chair Alessia Maio; Kate Bartel, Perth Airport's New Terminal Commercial Planning Lead; and Sarah Quinton, Valuing Children's Initiative Development Executive.
As part of National Children’s Week 2025, Communities hosted a Child Safe Organisations Seminar to emphasise the importance of informing children and young people about their rights and support them to have a voice to influence decisions that affect them, in efforts to build organisational capacity to implement the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations.
The National Principles are an agreed, nationally consistent approach to embedding child safe cultures and practices at all levels in organisations of various sizes and across sectors that engage with children and young people.
Attendees were given advice on developing child safe cultures and practices within organisations to better engage children in decision making to create a culture of safety and wellbeing in their communities.
The National Principles incorporate lessons from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, identifying strategies to support organisations to put child safe practices into leadership, governance and culture, ultimately aiming to increase child safety and wellbeing.
The event held at Edith Cowan University, Mount Lawley campus, was attended by about 180 people in person, with more than 100 people joining via online streaming.
Following the Minister for Child Protection’s opening address, representatives from six organisations provided keynotes to discuss how they have adopted the National Principles and created a child safe culture.
- Jacqueline McGowan-Jones, Commissioner for Children and Young People WA
- Professor Laura Lundy, Professor Emerita of Children’s Rights at Queen’s University, Belfast; Professor of Law at University College Cork
- Kate Jones, Manager, Hub na NOg
- Sarah Quinton, Development Executive, Valuing Children’s Initiative
- Kate Bartel, New Terminal Commercial Planning Lead, Perth Airport
- Catrina Luz Aniere, CEO, Millennium Kids
Messages from all speakers focused on those strategies that support children and young people to be active participants in their environments, to speak up and be heard on decisions that affect them and have an avenue to communicate to their organisation and adults when they don’t feel safe.
Implementation of the National Principles isn’t simply a tick box compliance activity – it’s about working together, listening and engaging with both children and young people to create and maintain sustainable and inclusive child safe practices, cultures and behaviours.
It is an ongoing continuous improvement process that requires strong leadership, commitment and demonstrated behaviours at all levels of an organisation.
We all have a responsibility to keep children and young people safe.
Further information and resources on child safe organisations and the National Principles can be found on Child safe organisations - Events and a recording of the Children’s Week Seminar will be available in the coming weeks.
Related announcement:
Media Statement - 24 October 2025
Minister for Child Protection Hon. Jessica Stojkovski
New scheme to strengthen safety for WA children
Print this page
