Child & vulnerable person safe place

The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) is an independent statutory office established to promote and protect the rights, interests and wellbeing of adults with impaired decision-making capacity, and children and young people in the child protection system, including those residing in out-of-home care (foster, kinship or residential care), or who are staying at a visitable site (youth detention centres, authorised mental health services, and disability funded facilities).

The OPG is committed to the safety and wellbeing of children and adults. We want children and adults to be safe, happy and empowered, to protect them from harm, promote their wellbeing and allow them to reach their full potential. We support and promote the voices of children and adults who have experienced abuse and neglect and respect all children and adults, as well as our staff. We are committed to the safety, participation and empowerment of all children and adults.

All children and adults have an equal right to be protected from abuse or neglect regardless of their gender, race, age or cultural background, and should feel safe in the company of our staff.

We have zero tolerance of abuse of children and adults, and all allegations and safety concerns will be treated very seriously and in a way that is consistent with our robust policies and procedures.

We are committed to promoting the cultural safety and wellbeing of children and adults from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and culturally and/or linguistically diverse backgrounds and to providing them with a safe environment.

We will:

  • ensure children and adults have a voice in decisions that affect them to the greatest extent practicable
  • understand the lives and advocate the views of children and adults so we can better promote their human rights to prevent or address discrimination, abuse or neglect
  • promote the independence and capacity of children and adults and their support networks to self-advocate and prevent or address discrimination, abuse or neglect
  • maintain a child and adult safeguarding culture and environment
  • be preventative rather than reacting to incidents after they occur
  • have clear boundaries and guidelines set for the behaviour of all staff, stakeholders and clients, with a clearly stated zero tolerance of abuse and harm
  • be open to people both internal and external to our organisation raising questions, comments, concerns and feedback
  • have disciplinary processes and grievance procedures in place
  • have rigorous recruitment strategies, supervision and ongoing training and education for staff
  • provide support and guidance to clients, families and staff when concerns are expressed, always respecting children and adults rights to privacy.

Supporting the safety of children and vulnerable people