Child protection in the workplace: Reportable Conduct Scheme

Learn about behaviour you should report, the workplaces that are covered and how to report ACT public service staff.

Workplaces that are covered

The Reportable Conduct Scheme aims to improve child protection in selected ACT organisations that work with children.

Organisations must:

• investigate claims of child abuse or misconduct by their staff and volunteers
• report the allegations about the employee to the ACT Ombudsman within 30 days.

All ACT Government directorates are covered under the scheme.

For other organisations that are covered under the scheme, read about Reportable conduct on the ACT Ombudsman website.

Conduct you must report

Conduct is how an employee behaves at work and in their personal life.

Behaviour towards children that must be reported includes:

• emotional abuse and inappropriate use of force or physical restraint
• neglect
• psychological harm
• sexual misconduct
• sexual or physical offences and convictions where a child is a victim or is present
• inappropriate discipline or offences relating to not protecting children from harm.

Making a claim about an ACT Government employee

You can report current ACT Government staff, volunteers or contractors.

Anyone can report inappropriate behaviour or misconduct towards a child. It may come from:

• another employee
• a parent
• a child.

It may also come from a passing comment made about low level, concerning or questionable behaviour by an employee towards a child. On its own it may not appear serious but may indicate a pattern of behaviour that may be inappropriate.

What to include when you report the conduct

You should include:

• the person’s name
• what the allegation is
• whether there is a child or young person involved
• if there were any witnesses.

Who to report to first

Before reporting an ACT Government employee to their workplace, check if you should first report to:

• police
• Children, Youth and Families.

If a child is in danger now, call the police on 000

If your concerns are about abuse outside the family, contact ACT Policing on 131 444

If you think a child is at risk of significant harm by a family member or guardian:

• report child abuse online
• call Children, Youth and Families on 1300 556 729

Report to an ACT Government directorate or agency

If you know where the person works, report it to their directorate.

If you don’t know where the employee or volunteer works, you can email psm@act.gov.au

Protecting reporters

Information you provide is confidential.

We cannot give your name or contact details to another person or organisation unless:

• we are required to by law
• you have given us permission.

False or misleading allegations

It is an offence to make a false or misleading report against another person. If you do you may be fined or sent to prison.

What happens with your allegation

If there is an immediate risk to a child, we will contact ACT Policing.

We may also make a child concern report to Children, Youth and Families.

1. We will let you know that we have received the report.
2. We may ask you for more information.
3. We will check if the allegation involves reportable conduct by an ACT Government employee.
4. If it is not reportable conduct, but involves possible misconduct by an employee, we will send it to another ACT government department for investigation.
5. If the allegation involves reportable conduct, but not by an ACT Government employee, we may send it to Access Canberra as part of the Working with Vulnerable People Scheme.

If it is reportable conduct by an employee

We will:

1. Notify the ACT Ombudsman of the allegation.
2. Refer it to the Professional Standards Unit in Chief Minister, Treasury and Economic Directorate for investigation.

Any further action will depend on the outcome of this investigation.

Privacy laws do not allow us to tell you the outcome of the investigation.

Contact us

If you have questions about reporting an ACT Government employee, email psm@act.gov.au

Visit the ACT Ombudsman to learn about the Reportable Conduct Scheme