Child Safety and Wellbeing Policy

It is the policy of the Department of Justice (the Department) for all employees and contractors to behave respectfully, courteously and ethically towards children, young people and their families, and to promote the legal and human rights and safety and wellbeing of all children and young people who engage with the Department.

The Child Safety and Wellbeing Policy (the Policy) establishes the overarching principles that guide the Department’s expectations of all employees and contractors to provide a safe environment for children and young people and sets out our approach to managing risk to children and young people arising through the day-to-day work of the Department.

This Policy applies to all activities in the Department which involve, result in, or relate to, contact with children and young people. It applies to a broad range of situations where interaction with children and young people may occur, as the Department has a duty of care responsibility and obligations for the safety and wellbeing of children and young people.

Examples of how children and young people can have contact with the Department; but not limited to: 

• at a Youth Detention Facility
• with Youth Justice Services in the community,
• in the women’s prison estate living with their mothers/caregivers,
• as visitors to prisons,
• in the adult corrections systems through contact with their parents/caregivers,
• as witness or defendants in court,
• as a victim of crime, 
• through services provided by funded agencies; and
• through incidental contact (eg as a guest at a ceremony at the Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages, home visits, children and young people visiting Department buildings, at Department public events and Open Days, through Departmental complaints processes).

The above list is not exhaustive, and the Policy applies to all interactions with children and young people throughout the Department.

This Policy must be considered when developing, designing, and managing policies and programs to ensure they promote children and young person’s rights and include relevant child safety considerations.

It is acknowledged that Divisions may develop service-specific statements and administrative procedures for reporting child safety and wellbeing concerns, however this Policy should be recognised as the corporate standard. Divisional policies and procedures must be consistent with this Policy.