Guiding principles for the provision of a safe and supportive school environment
All Australian schools will:
affirm the right of all school community members to be safe from bullying, harassment and abuse at school
promote care, respect and cooperation, and value diversity
develop and implement policies, programmes and processes to nurture a safe and supportive school environment involving the whole school community
recognise that quality and educated leadership is essential for underpinning the creation of a safe and supportive school environment
ensure that roles and responsibilities are explicit, clearly understood and disseminated
recognise the critical importance of pre-service and ongoing professional development in creating a safe and supportive school environment
have a responsibility to provide curriculum for students to develop the knowledge, skills and dispositions needed for positive relationships
focus on policies that are proactive and oriented towards prevention and intervention
regularly monitor and evaluate policies and programmes so that evidence-based practice supports decisions and improvements
take action to protect children from all forms of maltreatment
In relation to bullying, harassment and violence there should be a coordinated whole school plan outlining how issues are addressed. In relation to child protection there must be:
an explicit aim of eliminating the risk of child abuse of all kinds by staff and visitors including student teachers, volunteers, students on work experience, therapists and other professionals
comprehensive screening of applicants for employment, student teachers and volunteers before they become involved in school activities, bearing in mind that few child sex offenders have criminal records
safe procedures for staff who work alone with students; and
clear procedures for the reporting of abuse by staff
Policies, programmes and procedures must be developed, disseminated and promoted across the whole school community in a way that is sensitive to parents, students and community members with diverse backgrounds. The periodic evaluation of policies, programmes and procedures must be undertaken and includes:
auditing the school’s policies/ strategies
reviewing bullying and safety issues through surveys of staff, students and parents
analysing evaluation data to inform future planning needs and practice
Risk assessment procedures for in and outside school premises must be in place; for example, risk minimisation through close supervision, environmental design and targeted programmes for students at risk (e.g. pro-social skills development).
Appropriate pre-service and in-service training must be conducted for all staff about bullying, violence, harassment and child protection issues.
Parent inclusion
Given that few parents have a realistic understanding of child protection issues, the school programme must aim to develop their awareness of child abuse, protection and bullying issues and strategies for dealing with them. This can be achieved through:
involving them in the whole school planning process
parent information sessions (e.g. on child protection curriculum, supporting children, cyber and other forms of bullying, safety on the internet and how parents can reinforce the safety strategies taught at school
access to community-based resources, and information on developing effective relationships and behaviour in children
the provision of up-to-date internet safety information available from Net-Alert (Australia), Netsafe (NZ) (free of charge by phone or internet
Managing incidents of abuse/victimisation
Cases of abuse/victimisation must be identified and reported. This includes:
(i) addressing bullying, harassment and violence by:
explicitly encouraging all members of the school community to take a proactive stand against bullying, violence and abuse
involving students and staff in identifying where bullying occurs
developing procedures to encourage early identification and reporting
responding proactively to signs of bullying, harassment and violence
creating opportunities for students to share concerns
encouraging students to seek help when abuse is witnessed or experienced
encouraging parents to report bullying and harassment issues to staff
Dr Ken Rigby’s retrospective research (2010) confirmed Finnish findings that school bullying is a strong predictor of psychiatric disorders and, in adulthood, victims experience more psychiatric symptoms and greater impairment across all of the mental health scales5.
(ii) for child protection:
implement child abuse reporting laws and regulations
identify indicators of all forms of child abuse and neglect
develop empathic listening skills
implement support and monitoring strategies, both immediate and long-term
ensure that steps and outcomes for managing incidents are clearly documented to facilitate evaluation and justify possible modification
involve other agencies/services as appropriate (e.g. police and child protection services) and implement individual case management systems through collaborative planning
ensure that relevant specialists are enlisted, especially for supporting staff dealing with child abuse cases
Providing support for students
Support must be provided for students involved in bullying, harassment, violence, abuse or neglect. This must:
focus on restoring the wellbeing of students who have been affected by victimisation, through the provision of social support and counselling
facilitate the reintegration of those involved in bullying (e.g. through restorative justice practices)
provide opportunities for individual students to develop more socially appropriate behaviour and coping skills, as relevant
The Framework did not include provision for the safety of students using home-stays and foreign exchanges. For further information on this see Chapter 12.
It is important to note that it is not the teacher or carer’s responsibility to inform parents when children report being sexuaIly abused; that is the role of child protection officers or police. If forewarned, parents may chaIlenge the abuser providing time for him or her to create an alibi. There is also a risk that protective parents will use violence against the accused persons or, alternatively, believe their denial and withdraw support from their child before police have investigated the aIlegations. Most commonly, if forewarned, abusers and their supporters will threaten victims that terrible things will happen if they don’t retract the aIlegation “and it will be all your fault”.
Cyber-safety
Legislation and policies affect schools and early childhood centres’ responsibilities