Student Safety

Our number one priority at Waverley Meadows Primary School is the safety and care of our students. We ensure our physical environment is maintained to the highest standards possible in order to be a safe place for children to learn and play. Providing an environment that supports our student’s Social and Emotional wellbeing is also vital. Our staff and volunteers are of a high calibre and hold the necessary current Victorian Institute of Teaching Registration or Working With Children’s Pass before being able to undertake any child related work within the school. 

CHILD SAFE STANDARDS 

The Victorian Government introduced Child Safe Standards to improve the way organisations that provide services for children prevent and respond to child abuse that may occur within their organisation. The standards are compulsory for all organisations providing services to children, and aim to drive cultural change in organisations so that protecting children from abuse is embedded in the everyday thinking and practice of leaders, staff and volunteers. 

At Waverley Meadows Primary School this assists us to:

• prevent child abuse
• encourage reporting of any abuse that does occur
• improve responses to any allegations of child abuse

The 7 child safe standards are a central feature of the Victorian Government’s response to the Family and Community Development Committee of the Victorian Parliament’s Betrayal of Trust: Inquiry into the Handling of Child Abuse by Religious and Other Non-Government Organisations (Betrayal of Trust Inquiry). 

Principles

The Child Safe Standards are underpinned by the understanding that all children are vulnerable. However, three overarching principles require organisations to consider the increased vulnerability of:

• Aboriginal children
• those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds
• children with disabilities.

These groups of children and young people may be particularly vulnerable to being victimised and may face challenges in reporting an incident of abuse. Research shows that providing safe environments for vulnerable children has positive, lifelong impacts that cannot be underestimated.

The 7 Standards

1. Governance and Leadership
   • Strong and clear governance arrangements allow leaders to ensure child safety is a focus within their organisation
   • Statement of Vision and Values 
2. Clear commitment to child safety 
   • A demonstrated commitment to child safety by documenting how your organisation will meet its duty of care and responsibilities.  
   • Statement of Commitment to Child Safety 
3. Code of Conduct
   • Establish clear expectations for appropriate behaviour with children. 
   • Child Safety Code of Conduct 
4. Human resource practices
   • Develop and implement human resource practices that reduce the risk of child abuse occurring within your organisation. 
   • Visitors policy
   • Photographing and filming policy
5. Responding and Reporting
   • All staff and volunteers must understand their role in keeping children safe, including their reporting responsibilities. 
   • Child Safety Responding and Reporting Procedures 
6. Risk and Mitigation
   • To reduce the likelihood of harm organisations must think about and define the risks
   • Child Safe Standards Risk Assessment  
7. Empowering Children
   • Children have a right to be heard and have their concerns and ideas taken seriously
   • Student Safety, Wellbeing and Engagement Policy