Identify and respond to children and young people at risk - NSW ...

Sense of emotional safety-not feeling alone or abandoned, having the presence
of someone ‘bigger, stronger, wider and kind’ (John Bowlby)
Sense of identity from being recognised and feeling significant to others
Support to manage feelings that may be overwhelming
Reduction of levels of physical arousal (e .g. heart rate, breathing, stress
hormone levels)
Realistic assessment of level of threat
Modelling healthy relationships
5.2 Ombudsman’s guidance
Show PowerPoint 5:1 NSW Ombudsman: ‘Physical contact
with children’.
This summarises key points from the NSW Ombudsman publication ‘Child
Protection in the Workplace’.
Where all participants work for designated agencies it may be useful to refer
more explicitly to the NSW Ombudman’s definition of what is, and is not
reportable conduct.
Ask:
‘What are the policies and procedures in your workplace that
identify if and when it would be reasonable for you to have physical
contact with a child or young person?’
Care of children may include situations where children are in danger and quick
action is needed to ensure their safety. For example a child who is out of their
depth in a swimming pool or who is about to run on the road in front of traffic.
Reasonable physical contact in these situations may be different to what is
reasonable in day-to-day contact with children. Staff have a duty of care to
anticipate dangers that could be reasonably expected and take preventive
action to address these.
Participants may have very different policies and procedures regarding physical
contact. Ensure discussion takes into account the demands of different roles and
work settings and is respectful of these differences.
Facilitator’s notes:
The Ombudsman Act 1974 refers specifically in the explanatory note in
s.25A(1) to the following examples of conduct that would not be
reportable:
touching a child in order to attract a child’s attention
to manual a child or comfort a distressed child
a school teacher raising his or her voice in order to attract attention
or restore order in the classroom, and
Keep Them Safe CHCCHILD401A – Facilitator’s Manual
© The NSW Technical and Further Education Commission
(TAFE NSW – Industry Skills Unit, Meadowbank, 2010)
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