Queensland’s Reportable Conduct Scheme is now in effect: what this means for our organisation and your family
The Reportable Conduct Scheme is part of Queensland’s new child safeguarding law, the Child Safe Organisations Act. The Act works to protect children from harm when they interact with businesses and organisations.
[Organisation name] is one of around 10,000 organisations in Queensland that care for, supervise or exercise authority over children and need to comply with the Reportable Conduct Scheme.
The scheme requires organisations to report and investigate when concerns of harm and abuse are raised and allows for information to be connected across sectors and organisations to better identify risks to children.
Importantly, it will play a critical role in providing a pathway for raising concerns about child harm that may not reach a threshold for police, helping us work together to keep your children safe and provide parents and families with confidence that concerns will be handled promptly.
The Reportable Conduct Scheme is in effect from today.
What can be reported under the scheme?
Reportable conduct is behaviour by workers and volunteers that includes:
- a child sexual offence
- sexual misconduct committed in relation to, or in the presence of a child
- ill-treatment of a child
- significant neglect of a child
- physical violence committed in relation to, or in the presence of a child
- behaviour that causes significant emotional or psychological harm to a child.
You can find out more about each of these types of behaviour, as well as examples of what they might look like, on the Queensland Family and Child Commission website.
How can I raise a concern?
The safety and wellbeing of the children in our care is our priority, so if you are concerned about harmful or abusive behaviour by any of our team, we need to know about it.
[Insert the name and contact details of who parents can raise concerns with directly, and/or any relevant information from your organisation’s complaints policy here. Provide a link to where your complaints information is located online if possible.]
You can also notify the Queensland Family and Child Commission – visit their website at www.qfcc.qld.gov.au.
What is [organisation name] doing to keep children safe?
We take children’s safety and wellbeing seriously. As an organisation that is subject to the Reportable Conduct Scheme, we’re also required to meet Queensland’s Child Safe Standards. The Standards create environments that prioritise the safety of children in an organisation’s culture, governance, policies and practices. The Standards are now in effect in Queensland and are a critical way we will protect children from harm. The Child Safe Standards and the Reportable Conduct Scheme work together: the standards work to prevent harm, and the scheme enables an appropriate response if harm occurs.
We have been working to implement the Child Safe Standards at, including [insert any focus points for your organisation’s implementation here – for example, updating complaints policies, statements of commitment to being child safe, feedback mechanisms for children and families, etc. Link to any information available for families here]
