Safety survey data from Victorian youth-serving organisations: Survey data from workers, young people, and organisational leaders’ self-reflections after implementing the Victorian Child Safe Standards

Abstract

In 2015, the Victorian Government Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) introduced the Victorian Child Safe Standards (the Standards). The aim was to promote the safety of children and young people by supporting the way in which organisations, their workforce (staff and volunteers) and members work so that protecting children and young people is always considered, taken seriously and acted upon. These Standards became fully operational in 2017. In 2019 DHHS began a review of the extent to which the Standards promote improvements in the child-safe culture, and the extent to which the regulatory scheme supports compliance by organisations. As part of the review, DHHS commissioned the Australian Catholic University’s Institute of Child Protection Studies (ICPS) to undertake surveys of staff, children, young people and leaders in a variety of youth-serving organisations. This report describes each survey in detail, presents an analysis of the participants, and describes the methodology. We It also presents our findings, addressing each standard individually, with a summary of overall findings related to the Standards as an overall regulatory framework for driving a culture of child-safety within all youth serving organisations across Victoria