Child Safe Standards

This week we will look at:

Standard 10: Implementation of the Child Safe Standards is regularly reviewed and improved

In complying with Child Safe Standard 10 a school must, at a minimum, ensure:

10.1  The school regularly reviews, evaluates and improves child safe practices.

10.2  Complaints, concerns and safety incidents are analysed to identify causes and systemic failures to inform continuous improvement.

10.3  The school reports on the findings of relevant reviews to staff and volunteers, community and families, and children and young people.

What does this looks like?

Schools will generally comply if they produce these documents and undertake these actions in a way that supports the school to achieve this Standard. The nature or characteristics of your school may mean you need to do something different to what is proposed below. Read our guidance materials for more information.

Documents

• All policies and procedures have a regular review period indicated in the document. (10.1)
• Reports document any child safety and wellbeing reviews and findings. (10.3)

Actions

• Records are kept of complaints, concerns, allegations and actions taken to respond. (10.1, 10.2, 10.3)
• Complaints, concerns, safety incidents or significant breaches of policy (such as the Code of Conduct) are examined to understand what caused the problem and whether there are any flaws in the school’s policies, procedures and practices that contributed to the problem. Where flaws or failings are identified, improvements are made to prevent the problem from happening again. (10.1, 10.2)
• The school regularly reviews policies, procedures and child safe practices, and makes improvements considering:
  • analysis of complaints, concerns, safety incidents and significant breaches of policy
  • feedback sought from staff, volunteers, children, families and communities
  • whether the schoolhas fully implemented each of the Child Safe Standards. (10.1, 10.2 and links to Standard 3 and 4.3)
• Reports about the findings and actions taken in response to reviews of the school’s child safe practices are shared with staff, volunteers, children, families and communities. (10.3)