SAFEGUARDING CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE

Jeremy Rockliff MP, Premier

Tasmanians’ priorities are our priorities, and there is nothing more important than the safety and wellbeing of our children and young people.

That’s why we established a far-reaching Commission of Inquiry, to acknowledge past failures and ensure the future protection of our children and young people.

As I have said, it is our clear intention to adopt all of the recommendations once the COI is finalised, but we are not waiting for the Inquiry to finish before we start this important work – we are listening and acting now.

The 2022-23 Tasmanian Budget includes significant investments to ensure our children and young people are safe and have the supports they need for the future.

This includes our $36.4 million investment over four years into safeguarding children and young people in our schools, which will include a School Safeguarding Officer in every government school as part of a Support and Wellbeing Team.

It will also provide additional psychologists in our schools and more support for children and young people affected by harmful sexual behaviours, including four full-time equivalent Senior Support Staff with specialist expertise, and eight additional social workers – meaning more professional support will be available for children and young people, when and where they need it.

And, it will also result in mandatory professional development for all departmental staff so they can better understand, prevent and respond to child sexual abuse – building a culture where children and their safety are at the forefront of decision-making.

These actions fulfil key recommendations from the Independent Inquiry into the Department of Education’s Responses to Child Sexual Abuse and will ensure additional critical safeguards are in place for our children and young people.

The Budget invests in further measures to safeguard children and young people, including:

• An additional $758,000 to support the investigation of complaints and disciplinary processes for the Teachers Registration Board;
• $2.2 million to support a whole-of-government response unit to deliver a coordinated Tasmanian Government response to the Commission of Inquiry;
• $240,000 to build shared capability for serious investigations related to code of conduct beaches across the State sector;
• $2.5 million towards the design and implementation of a Child and Youth Safe Organisations Framework, legislated child safe standard and a reportable conduct scheme – delivering another key recommendation from the Royal Commission;
• Supporting children and young people impacted by trauma, with a further $24.6 million over four years;
• $15.1 million to pilot Multidisciplinary Centres to provide victim-survivors with immediate and integrated wrap-around support;
• An additional $5.4 million to recruit more frontline workers for the Advice and Referral Line and Child Safety Services, as part of our continued investment;
• $2.2 million to establish an Out of Home Care Accreditation and Carer’s Registration to improve standards;
• $3.7 million to forensic science laboratories to preserve forensic evidence longer for victim-survivors, including increasing capacity for refrigeration and storage of serious crime exhibits; and
• Investing $5 million across three years to expand on our existing support for students affected by trauma, which has been especially valuable the last few years due to the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

We are a Government with integrity and heart and this Budget demonstrates our ongoing commitment to creating a safer Tasmania for all children and young people.