Safeguarding at St Paul’s Catholic Church, Mount Lawley
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Our Commitment
St Paul’s Parish Mount Lawley, as part of the Perth Catholic Archdiocese, is dedicated to providing a safe and secure environment for all members, especially children, young people, and vulnerable adults.
We believe that every individual has the right to physical and psychological safety at all times.
Policies and procedures have been put in place to ensure our collective responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of all people, particularly children and vulnerable adults, is catered for throughout our Parish activities.
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The Safeguarding Program
The Safeguarding Program has been developed and implemented across our Archdiocese to:
- Prevent abuse and harm to children and vulnerable adults within our parish.
- Build a culture of safeguarding, putting the needs and welfare of children and vulnerable adults first.
- Ensure all clergy, staff, and volunteers comply with safeguarding policies and procedures.
- Provide clear avenues for responding to concerns, complaints, or allegations of harm.
Reporting Concerns
If you have any concerns about the safety or well-being of a child or vulnerable adult, or wish to report abuse, you can:
- Contact one of our Parish Safeguarding Officers, who are the first point of contact for any safeguarding concerns.
- Submit a Safeguarding Concern Report Form via the Archdiocesan Safeguarding Program website https://safeguarding.perthcatholic.org.au/
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Parish Safeguarding Officers
Our trained Safeguarding Officers are available to:
- Assist with safeguarding concerns and provide support, advice, and information.
- Ensure the Safeguarding Program is implemented in our parish.
- Respond to all safeguarding concerns in accordance with the Safeguarding Handbook and report to the Archdiocesan Director as needed.
- Further details on the role of the Safeguarding Officer are available here.
If you have any concerns about a child or vulnerable adult’s safety in the Parish, our Safeguarding Officers may be contacted on their details below.
Their contact details are also provided on posters throughout St Paul’s parish buildings.
NB: any information given to the Safeguarding Officers in confidence will be forwarded to the Archdiocese of Perth, Safeguarding Project Coordinator, where professional and confidential assistance is provided.
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Roles and Responsibilities of Parish Volunteers
TRAINING
All parish volunteers MUST undertake Safeguarding Level 1 Induction Training and complete a Personal Declaration and Code of Conduct Form as part of that initial training process. The self-paced online training takes approximately 40 minutes and is required to be refreshed every three years. In-person workshops are also offered at various locations, with enrolment available on the Safeguarding Program website.
CLEARANCE
Some volunteer roles may also require other clearances, such as Working With Children Checks or National Volunteer Police Clearance, according to the responsibilities of the role.
COMPLIANCE
All volunteers are expected to take all reasonable steps to ensure the protection of children and adults at risk and to comply with our safeguarding policy and guidelines, including responding to and reporting all concerns, suspicions, and allegations of abuse.
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Information about Safeguarding Practices at St Pauls
Annual Self-Assessment SAAT
As part of our ongoing commitment to safeguarding in the Parish and to strengthening our safeguarding practices, our Parish completes an annual Safeguarding Activities Assessment Tool (SAAT). The results are reported to our Parish Priest and the finance committee. A summary is provided at the Parish AGM.
Risk assessment of Key Activities
When planning an activity, ministries of the Parish should complete a risk assessment prior to commencement to identify any perceived safeguarding risks (including the likelihood of them occurring, the consequences if they did occur, and any strategies to suitably mitigate the risk). A Safeguarding Risk Assessment checklist can be used in the planning stage of an event or activity. An annual review of our Parish activities informs the discernment as to which key activities in the parish may require a risk assessment during the planning of an event. The Checklist is to be completed by the key stakeholder or ministry organising the event. The completed Checklist is stored at the Parish office.
Annual Report at the AGM
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Additional Awareness and Learning opportunities
From time to time, external agencies offer opportunities to learn more about one or more aspect of Safeguarding our community members. As we are notified of these opportunities, the information will be posted here for members of St Paul’s parish to partake if they so wish.
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Resources
Parish Risk Assessment templates may be accessed by ministry coordinators here:
- General Checklist
- Children’s activities or events
- Community or Adult activities or event
- Home Visits
For more information, policies, and helpful resources, please visit the Perth Archdiocese Safeguarding Program website https://safeguarding.perthcatholic.org.au/