In complying with Victorian Child Safe Standard 2 an organisation must, at a minimum, ensure that they make a public commitment to child safety. The following is taken from the Guide for Creating a Child Safe Organisation developed by The Commission for Children and Young People.
"Your organisation must make a public commitment to child safety. This tells the whole community that your organisation prioritises the safety of children and will not tolerate child abuse and harm. It affirms your organisation’s commitment to listen to and empower all children within the organisation. The Standards do not mandate the exact words you need to use in your commitment or how you need to make it public. You can design the public commitment to child safety so it best reflects your organisation and those involved with it. The commitment could be in the form of a stand-alone statement or part of your Child Safety and Wellbeing Policy."
As a parent, who also works in this area this is something I consider to be a bare minimum when I'm assessing the suitability of an organisation for my child. The reality is that despite this been a requirement that has been in place since the Standards originated in 2016 too many organisations still don't have this in place.
A good, accessible Statement of Commitment conveys that your organisation:
Is aware of the Child Safe Standards
Has allocated time and resources to keeping children and young people safe
Values children and young people's rights to safety
When an organisation does not have an accessible Statement of Commitment it conveys that:
Implementation of the Child Safe Standards is not a priority
Resources have not been allocated to Child Safety
Leadership may not be aware of or understand their obligations to keep children safe
Staff may not have been trained in The Child Safe Standards
As a parent is this something that you have come across? Is this something you look for?
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