Statement of Compliance 2024-25
The Commonwealth Child Safe Framework (CCSF) sets the minimum standards for creating and maintaining child safe culture and practices in Australian Government entities. It is mandatory for all Commonwealth non-corporate entities to issue an annual statement of compliance.
Our interactions with children and young people
The nature of our work in the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (Commission) is predominantly focused on the regulation of the aged care sector; therefore, the majority of our staff do not interact directly with children and young persons in the normal performance of their duties. We have identified the following circumstances in which staff may interact with children or young persons:
- personnel performing regulatory functions off-site in residential or home care settings
- personnel performing engagement functions off-site, for example conferences
- personnel performing enabling functions at Commission premises, for example interacting with children of staff/contractors/visitors.
Additionally, it has been identified that Commission ICT assets could be used to interact with children or young persons.
Where there is a likelihood of interaction with children and young persons, either directly in the course of our functions or through broader community engagement, we are committed to considering and actively managing any potential risks.
Annual risk assessment
In accordance with the requirements of the CCSF, we undertake an annual risk assessment per financial year of our activities to evaluate the risk of harm to children and young people. Our current overall risk rating for child-safety related risks is low.
Our commitment to the Commonwealth Child Safe Framework
We are committed to the safety of children and young people, and safeguarding children from abuse, neglect and exploitation. We seek to create and maintain behaviours, practices and an organisational culture that acknowledges the importance of child safety and wellbeing.
Managing child safety is an ongoing process and we have a number of controls in place to enhance the protection of children and young people. This includes:
- Provision of information and training to ensure staff awareness of, and compliance with, our child safety requirements. In 2024-25 this included mandatory completion of training that related to the Commonwealth Child Safe Framework, integrity and the APS Code of Conduct.
- Maintenance of a strong pro-integrity culture based around the APS Values, including ethical and respectful behaviour, as articulated in our People Strategy 2024-26.
- Rigorous recruitment and workforce screening, including police checks for all new staff, and additional checks every two years for Quality Assessors.
- Procurement contractual provisions to ensure contracted third parties have an appropriate level of screening conducted.
- Implementation of a new governance structure, with a specific child safety oversight function embedded within.
As part of our commitment to the safety of children and young persons, we will continue to implement identified outcomes of the annual risk assessment to further strengthen and improve our existing child safety system. This may include the establishment of a child safety champion, continued improvement of our governance arrangements, strengthening of our reporting system, consideration of ongoing suitability measures for our workforce, and an increased focus on our preventative digital activities.
