Safeguarding Officers

Purpose
To ensure the safety of children, young people and the vulnerable within the confines of the Catholic Church across the Archdiocese of Perth, educating the Catholic community on child protection and protective behaviours, and establishing Safeguarding Officers within Perth’s metropolitan and rural parishes.

Key Activities
To ensure that parishes meet the Archdiocese of Perth’s safeguarding responsibilities in all aspects of service that they undertake.

Co-ordinators
Mr Paul Hille – p 0409 114 389 e hille.paul@cathednet.wa.edu.au

About Us
The Archdiocese of Perth is the first of Australia’s Catholic dioceses to begin to establish Safeguarding Officers across its network of parishes. The Safeguarding Office is responsible for ensuring the safety of children, young people and the vulnerable within the confines of the Catholic Church across the Archdiocese of Perth, educating the Catholic community on child protection and protective behaviours, and establishing Safeguarding Officers within Perth’s metropolitan and rural parishes.

The Safeguarding Project is child-focused and informed by a fundamental belief that children have the right to physical and psychological safety at all times and we, the Catholic Archdiocese of Perth, must play our part in protecting all children and vulnerable individuals.

The Safeguarding Project will also provide services, if and when needed, to the broader parish community.

Roles and Responsibilities of Parish Safeguarding Officers

The role of Parish Safeguarding Officers is key to ensuring that parishes meet the Archdiocese of Perth’s safeguarding responsibilities in all aspects of service that they undertake.

They will be required to:
• be a source of support, advice and information on all matters of safeguarding children and vulnerable adults in the parish
• be the rst point of contact for children, vulnerable adults and other members of the parish community regarding suspicions of abuse and other safeguarding concerns
• respond to all safeguarding concerns in line with the Archdiocese’s Safeguarding Policy and Procedures manual, reporting these concerns to the Safeguarding Project Coordinator and/ or other authorities, as needed
• keep the Parish Priest informed of all concerns, responses and activities relating to safeguarding children and other members of the parish community
• raise the profile of safeguarding in the parish, ensuring that it remains a high priority, and report on any issues or concerns with the implementation of the safeguarding policy and procedures
• assist with proactive measures within parishes to safeguard children
• ensure that all statutory requirements are met within parishes in respect to the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults.

The Safeguarding officers:
• will act as a liaison with outside agencies and a resource person to any staff member or volunteer who has child protection concerns.
• is responsible for ensuring that the standard reporting procedure is followed,
so that suspected cases of child neglect or abuse are referred promptly to the Safeguarding Project Coordinator or in the event of an emergency the Department for Child Protection and Family Support.
• will ensure that they are knowledgeable about child protection and undertake any training considered necessary to keep themselves updated on new developments.