WA Child Safe Project

About the Child Safe Project:

The Western Australian Council of Social Service (WACOSS) has partnered with the Council of Aboriginal Services Western Australia (CASWA) to build organisational capacity for child safe organisations and support the development of Aboriginal-led culturally safe approaches to child safety that reflect community values and strengths.

Since February 2025, the Child Safe Project has been delivered by WACOSS in partnership with CASWA, building on previous work to support small and medium-sized service providers across Western Australia in implementing the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations (National Principles).

National Principles for Child Safe Organisations:

The National Principles for Child Safe Organisations are a set of 10 Principles developed in response to the recommendations from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. They aim to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all children across all sectors in Australia. The principles provide a nationally consistent approach to creating child safe culture in organisations that work or engage with children.

They are underpinned by a children’s rights approach in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Child Safe Standards recommended by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. It is noted that the National Principles go beyond the Child Safe Standards as they cover all forms of child abuse and neglect, whereas the Standards are limited to child sexual abuse.

The National Principles provide a clear framework to help organisations, services, and communities, create and maintain environments where children feel safe, are respected, and have a voice. They outline the essential standards and key actions needed to embed child safety into leadership, governance, policies, and daily practices. By implementing the principles, organisations commit to a cultural shift that put the best interest of the child at the forefront, enabling them to assess and strengthen their policies, procedures, and practices to prevent harm and respond appropriately when concern arises.

The Project aims to support all small to medium sized Community Service Providers and ACCOs to strengthen their commitment in keeping children safe through the practical implementation of the National Principles through:

• Webinars
• In-person workshops
• One on one advisory support services
• Policy templates and resources

Advisory Support

As a part of this Project there is a free one-on-one advisory service for small to medium sized community service organisations. The primary purpose of this intervention is for WACOSS to provide ongoing, tailored support to address specific challenges that organisations may encounter either commencing their journey or post-workshop/webinar. We aim to foster a collaborative learning environment that encourages innovation and collective problem-solving.

For further information, questions, or reaching out for advisory support – please email: [email protected]

Additional Resources:

Department of Communities – Knowledge Hub
Council of Aboriginal Services WA (CASWA)

The Project is supported by Lotterywest and the Department of Communities.