Page 1896 - Week 06 - Thursday, 9 June 2016
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There is also strong national support for the New South Wales model on which this scheme is based. As the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Childhood Foundation, Dr Joe Tucci, recently stated, the New South Wales scheme:
…has worked with organisations in a capacity building way and over time increased the level of scrutiny that organisations can come under in relation to the way that they investigate claims or allegations of abuse by volunteers and employees. I cannot think of a better system in place anywhere in the world.
The royal commission has also highlighted the strengths of this scheme, stating in a recent discussion paper on best practice principles in responding to complaints of child sexual abuse in institutional contexts that it is, indeed, actively considering whether it would be beneficial for schemes similar to the New South Wales reportable conduct scheme to be established in all Australian states and territories.
It has been said that the Ombudsman “brings the lamp of scrutiny to otherwise dark places even over the resistance of those who would draw the blinds”. The royal commission has shown there are still too many dark places within institutions to hide those who would harm children, and there are still those who draw the blinds rather than face the embarrassment or damage that illumination may bring.
This bill will expand the jurisdiction of the Ombudsman to include matters of child protection and will allow for scrutiny of the way employers investigate misconduct involving children. Fundamentally, it will ensure the Ombudsman is aware of every allegation of certain types of employee misconduct involving children.
This misconduct could include assault, ill treatment, neglect or causing psychological harm to children and is collectively referred to as reportable conduct for the purposes of this scheme. Importantly, reportable conduct includes conduct that falls below a criminal threshold and may not necessarily be reportable to police. This will ensure that grooming behaviour can be identified in its early stages and the risks to children dealt with appropriately.
The bill empowers the Ombudsman to monitor the progress of investigations of reportable conduct. In the majority of instances, this will involve receiving two reports from the employer organisation updating the Ombudsman on the progress of the investigation. The first will include the nature of the allegation, the proposed action and any initial information provided by the subject of the allegation. The second is made at the conclusion of an investigation, and updates the Ombudsman on the result of the investigation and, importantly, the action taken.
The scheme will apply to all staff of entities designated under the bill. These designated entities include schools, childcare providers, kinship and foster care organisations, residential care organisations, government directorates, and health providers. For the purpose of this scheme, employees will include all paid workers, volunteers, and foster or kinship carers. This will ensure that all children receive the same degree of protection regardless of the legal status of the worker that has responsibility for their care.
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