Child Wise delivers child safety training programs to leadership teams, staff and volunteers that work or engage with children and young people in their workplace.
Child Wise training programs are designed to equip participants with vital knowledge and skills such as:
- identifying risks to children
- responding to disclosures of abuse
- responding to concerns and allegations of harm to children
- strengthening organisational child safeguarding policies and practices in line with state and national child safe standards and principles
- leading child safety reforms in your organisation
- empowering children and hearing their voice in decision-making
Our programs range in length from 2 hours to 2 days and provide different levels of engagement for participants based on their needs.
Please review the training program descriptions below to find out which program is right for you. If you have any questions, please contact us to speak to one of our team members.
Virtual Classroom Training
Virtual classroom training is essentially a teaching and learning environment where participants can interact, communicate, view and discuss presentations, and engage with learning resources while working in groups, all in an online setting.
Delivered by highly qualified and experienced Child Wise trainers, our virtual classrooms are very interactive and limited to a small class of up to 20 participants to ensure a complete learning experience for participants.
To read more about the virtual training programs on offer, please click here.
Public Training (Face-to-face)
We deliver public training at a range of locations throughout Australia.
Please note, at this point in time our public face-to-face training is under review due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Public training is a great way to train one or two people from your organisation. Public training brings together professionals and service providers that work with children and young people from a variety of sectors. It also provides a great opportunity for peer-to-peer discussion and networking.
Click below to find a public training session near you and to book.
These are programs we deliver face-to-face publicly, but that can also be delivered to your organisation only:
Child Safe Fundamentals
Child Safe Fundamentals provides an overview of the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations and where specific state child safe standards fit, depending on where your organisation is located. It aims to assist staff and volunteers to understand the legislative context and how the Principles/Standards apply to their organisation and to their day to day work with children and young people.
Who should attend?
Child Safe Fundamentals is suitable for staff and volunteers who work with children and/or young people and have some prior understanding of child abuse. It aims to build on this knowledge through exploration of the findings of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse and deepen participants’ understanding of how to keep children safe within their organisation.
Duration
3 hours
Topics
- Legislative and policy context
- Elements of child safe practice and culture
- Barriers and challenges to creating a child safe environment
- Learnings from the Royal Commission - managing the risks and what constitutes a child safe environment
- Empowering children
- Reportable Conduct
Learning outcomes
- Learn the elements of child safe practice and culture
- Understand the dynamics of sexual offending and grooming
- Build confidence in responding to incidents, allegations or disclosures of child abuse
Child Safe Organisations
Embedding a child safe culture
The Child Safe Organisations program unpacks the actions that organisations need to take to ensure they are safe for children and meet their obligations to meet state and federal Government Child Safe Standards and Principles.
Who should attend?
This program is for anyone in an organisation in a leadership or management position, or who has responsibility for keeping children safe via a child safeguarding portfolio. Using the national child safety principles, it presents an overview of human resource requirements, policies, procedures and practices that strengthen the capacity of organisations to provide a safe and empowering environment for children and young people.
Duration
1 day
Topics
- Child Safe Standards/Principles
- What is child abuse
- Dynamics of offenders
- Context for organisational change
- Legislation
- Reportable Conduct
- Empowering children
Learning outcomes
- Learn how to build a child safe culture that promotes the empowerment of children and young people in your organisation
- Learn how to strengthen screening, recruitment and selection processes in your organisation to support a child safe culture
- Learn how to implement procedures that encourage an effective response to concerns, allegations or incidences of child abuse
- Understand your organisation's responsibilities within the current legislative context
- Understand the importance of establishing a child safe culture to prevent incidents and mitigate risks
- Learn how to empower children and young people and the importance to see things through their eyes
Child Safety Champions
Become a child safety champion for your organisation
Child Safety Champions is an intensive training program designed to give you the skills and knowledge to lead a child safeguarding portfolio or reform in your organisation.
Who should attend?
This training program is recommended for experienced professionals who have a responsibility to lead the implementation of a child safe environment for children and young people. This can include HR professionals, leaders and managers who have prior training or knowledge of child protection. It equips participants to lead child safety reforms within your organisation through the exploration of the practical application of national child safe standards/principles.
Duration
2 days
Topics
- Royal Commission findings
- 10 National Principles for Child Safe Organisations
- Understanding child abuse
- Impacts of child abuse
- What makes a child safe organisation
- Creating a child safe culture
- Child safe Procedures
- Risk management
- Participation of children & young people
- HR practices – recruitment, selection and screening
- Where to next
Learning outcomes
- Impact of abuse on children and young people
- Understand the findings of the Royal Commission and the risks to children within organisations
- Understand your organisation’s responsibilities within the current legislative context
- Learn how to build a child safe culture that promotes the empowerment of children and young people in your organisation
- Learn how to strengthen screening, recruitment and selection processes in your organisation
- Learn how to implement procedures that encourage an effective response to concerns, allegations or incidences of child abuse
Real life examples. Knowledgeable trainer. Chances to share with others.
In-house training
Child Wise can deliver training to your staff in-house at your organisation or through our virtual classroom training. To read more about our virtual classroom training programs, please click here.
We are still offering face-to-face in-house training as long as it's within state-based COVID-19 restrictions and requirements.
In-house training is recommended for organisations that need to train groups of staff and volunteers, or the board/leadership team. In-house training can be delivered in its standard format or customised to suit your organisational needs and context. The training provided includes state-based and national legislation that applies to you.
If you have any questions or would like to book an in-house training session, contact us to discuss your needs and get a free quote.
As well as the public training programs listed, these are the programs that we can deliver in-house to your organisation:
Speak Up
Identifying and responding to child abuse
Speak Up is an introductory training program which aims to help you identify and recognise signs and indicators of child abuse and build confidence about what to do if you have concerns about a child. The training includes an overview of the legislative context around child safety and mandatory reporting at an introductory level.
Who should attend?
Speak Up is suitable for staff and volunteers that work with children and/or young people and have had no prior knowledge about child abuse.
Duration
2 hours
Topics
- What is child abuse?
- Indicators of child abuse
- Offender behaviour and the ‘grooming’ process
- Legislative context
- Responding to, and reporting child abuse
Learning outcomes
- Learn how to recognise the physical and behavioural indicators of child abuse
- Understand the grooming process and how sex offenders can target children and young people
- Understand your responsibility in preventing and responding to abuse
- Build confidence in responding to and reporting child abuse
Hearing the Voice of the Child
Hearing the Voice of the Child aims to help you empower children and young people to speak up about what makes them feel safe or unsafe in your organisation. This training aims to unpack relevant standards/principles and help you implement them in your organisation.
Children that are more assertive and vocal in expressing their opinions are less vulnerable to abuse. The training will also work through how to respond to disclosures of abuse from children or young people who may be experiencing harm.
Who should attend?
Hearing the Voice of the Child is suitable for staff and volunteers that work with children and/or young people. Prior training or knowledge of child protection is recommended.
Duration
3 hours
Topics
- The Royal Commission findings and recommendations
- Unpack relevant standards/principles
- Empowering children
- Building child participation
- Child friendly complaints processes
- Managing disclosures of child abuse
Learning outcomes
- Learn how to empower children to speak up and participate in your organisation
- Understand how to implement relevant standards/principles in your organisation
- Build confidence in responding to allegations or incidences of child abuse
- Workshop practical strategies to facilitate child participation
Leading a Child Safe Organisation
Become a leader in child safety
Leading a Child Safe Organisation is designed for leaders and senior managers to gain an understanding of the legislative and policy requirements or organisations to safeguard children and young people in their care. This program summarises the findings of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, and the obligations relating to meeting the national Child Safe Principles to ensure that leadership teams understand their obligations and can lead organisational responses and reform.
Who should attend?
This training program is recommended for leaders, management and executive members in organisations where children and young people spend time. Prior training or knowledge of the topic is not required.
Duration
2 hours
Topics
- An overview of the findings of the Royal Commission
- A briefing on child safe standards and relevant legislation
- An examination of the signs, indicators and impacts of child abuse and neglect
- An overview of child safe standards/principles
- Team based analysis examining strengths and areas for improvement
- An examination of organisational and business processes including governance, human resources and the management of public spaces
- Risk management and mitigation
Learning outcomes
- Understand the risks to children and young people in organisations
- Develop a common understanding of the relevant legislation and policy context
- Develop a common understanding of child abuse and neglect
- Understand the factors that make organisations safe/unsafe for children and young people
- Identify ‘next steps’ for the development of child safety policy and practice in you organisation
Yarn Up (for parents and carers)
For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents and carers
The Yarn Up program was designed to inform Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents and carers about child abuse and factors that holistically increase child, family and community safety and well-being. It aims to enable parents and carers to communicate and support their children to speak up about difficult issues, and increase protective factors that improve family and community resilience.
Who should attend?
This program is recommended for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents and carers.
Duration
3 hours
Topics
- The various forms of child abuse
- Sexual development of children – normal vs concerning behaviours
- How to talk to children about issues of safety
- What are the indicators of abuse
- How child sex offenders target children and the ‘grooming’ process
- How to report concerns and seek help
Learning outcomes
- Recognise the behavioural indicators of child abuse in children
- Be aware of how child sexual abusers can target children and form special relationships with them
- Know how to respond to a suspicion, situation or disclosure of child abuse
- Teach children about body safety and protective behaviours in a culturally safe manner
Yarn Up (for professionals)
The Yarn Up program was designed to build the capacity of professionals that work with indigenous children and young people to ensure their safety in the organisations where they spend time.
Who should attend?
This program is for anyone in an organisation in a leadership or management position, or who has responsibility for keeping children safe via a child safeguarding portfolio.
Duration
1 day
Topics
- Brief overview of child abuse, its indicators, prevalence and impact on indigenous children and young people
- Legislative context
- Overview of findings from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse
- Creating a child safe culture
- Developing a child safety policy framework
- Exploration of organisational risk and protective factors
- Promoting best practice in screening, recruitment and selection
- Responding to and reporting child abuse
- Empowerment strategies for indigenous children and young people
Learning outcomes
- Gain an understanding of child abuse and its impact on children and young people
- Understand the findings of the Royal Commission and the risks to children within organisations
- Understand your organisation’s responsibilities within the current legislative context
- Learn how to build a child safe culture that promotes the empowerment of indigenous children and young people in your organisation
- Learn how to strengthen screening, recruitment and selection processes in your organisation
- Learn how to implement procedures that encourage an effective and culturally appropriate response to concerns, allegations or incidences of child abuse
Child Wise have been incredibly useful and informative for us: they’ve also been extremely supportive and practical. I really didn’t know where to start with getting our organisation compliant and working in the best possible way with our young people. After working with the fabulous Mandy, I feel so much more confident about what I need to do. They’ve been terrific.