The Catholic Diocese of Sandhurst is committed to providing a safe and supportive environment for all persons, especially children, young people and adults at risk and has a zero tolerance of abuse. The Diocese is committed to nationally established standards and protocols of the Catholic Church, as well as being compliant with all government legislation.
The Diocese has a Safeguarding Committee which consists of the Bishop, Safeguarding Co-ordinator, clergy of the Diocese and lay members, a composition representing the professions of law, health, education, parishes and social work across the Diocese.
It is the responsibility of the Committee to oversee Safeguarding policies and procedures of the diocese and advise the Bishop in his duty of creating and sustaining safeguarding practices and policies in the parishes, agencies and entities of the Diocese.
The Committee meets at least three times a year. (See pdf Terms of Reference(176 KB) ).
Safeguarding
- pdf Commitment Statement to the Safety of Children, Young People and Adults at Risk(124 KB)
- pdf Policy - Safeguarding Children and Young People(648 KB)
- pdf Appendix A: Children are safe, informed, and participate(161 KB)
- pdf Appendix B: Code of Conduct(152 KB)
- pdf Appendix C: Recruitment, screening, induction and training(171 KB)
- pdf Appendix D: Risk Management, providing a safe environment(260 KB)
- pdf Appendix E: Safeguarding and Complaints Management(237 KB)
- pdf Appendix F: National Police Check Protocol(229 KB)
- pdf Appendix G: Working with Children Check Protocol(222 KB)
- pdf Appendix H: Child Safety Legislation in Vic and other Jurisdictions(160 KB)
- pdf Children's Code of Conduct(78 KB)
- A Guide to Social Media for Parishes
- pdf Responding to Issues of concern (flowchart)(57 KB)
- pdf Guidelines for Managing High Risk Individuals(82 KB)
- pdf Consent/Incident/Complaint form(72 KB)
- pdf Safeguarding Committee Terms of Reference(176 KB) (2024)
Child Protection Legislation
- Working With Children Check
- Summary of Grooming Offence
- Summary of Failure to Protect Legislation
- Summary of Failure to Report legislation
- Victorian Child Safe Standards including Reportable Conduct Scheme
Information for Child Safe Organisations
Overviews
- Overview of the Victorian Child Safe Standards (CCYP – Video)
- What does a child-safe parish feel like (ACSL Video)
- pdf National Principles for Child Safe Organisations - Checklist of online safety(809 KB)
Empowerment and Participation
-
pdf
Empowerment and Participation of Children(7.57 MB)
(CCYP)
- “How to Guide” for engaging children and young people (ACSL)
Cultural Safety
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children
- Cultural Safety for Aboriginal Children (CCYP Tip Sheet)
- Understanding Cultural Safety in Child Safe Organisations (SNAICC – Video)
- Aboriginal Cultural Safety -- A conversation with Sherry Balcombe and Michael Chisholm 1 July 2022 (Video)
- Mordialloc/Aspendale Parish discussion with Sherry Balcombe on Aboriginal Culture (Video)
Children with a disability
- Safety of Children with a Disability (CCYP Tip Sheet)
Adults at Risk
- pdf Adults at risk fact sheet(2.10 MB)
- pdf Convention on the Rights of a Person with a Disability (2.08 MB)
Resources for Online Safety
Links
- National Redress Scheme
- CCYP An overview of the Victorian child safe standards
- ACSL (Australian Catholic Safeguarding Limited) Information
- Mandatory reporting
- pdf Pathways Response Vic Ltd(444 KB)
- ACSL National Catholic Safeguarding Standards (NCSS)
- CCYP Reportable Conduct – Video
Contact
To make contact with the Diocesan Safeguarding Committee,
Mr Greg Westbrook
Ph: 03 5445 3600 | E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Further contact
Pathways Victoria
Ph (03) 7064 3940 or www.pathwaysvictoria.com
