1. Introduction

All FFV football clubs are required to implement the Child Safe Standards and the mandatory reporting guidelines from the Victorian Government's amendment to the Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 (Vic) (“CYFA”) and the Crimes Act 1958 (Vic) (“Crimes Act”).

EGUFC is committed to promoting and protecting the safety and wellbeing of all children. We have zero tolerance for child abuse.Everyone involved at the Club is responsible for the care and protection of children and reporting information about child abuse.

2. Purpose

The purpose of this Policy is to:

a) work towards a Club culture of child safety;

b) ensure that all persons are aware of their responsibilities for identifying possible occasions for child abuse and for establishingprocedures for preventing such abuse and/or detecting such abuse when it occurs;

c) provide guidance on responding where a person suspects any child abuse within all Club Environments;

d) provide a clear statement to players, committee members, volunteers, employees and contractors forbidding any such abuse; and

e) provide assurance that any and all suspected abuse will be investigated.

f) The FFV Child Protection Guidelines, available on the FFV website, has more detailed information on each of these areas. The Club will use all reasonable endeavours to adopt and comply with those Guidelines in its recruitment practices.

In addition to this Policy, the FFV has produced Child Protection Guidelines which are available on the FFV website. The Club will comply with those Guidelines to aid and supplement this policy.

3. Scope

This Policy, and the attached Code of Conduct, applies to all players, committee members, volunteers, coaches, team managers, assistants, employees and parents of players of the Club, whether registered via MFC or otherwise registered with our club. Non-registered individuals who otherwise participate in activities with or for our club are also bound to this policy by virtue of their participation in our club’s activities. Breaches of this Policy or the Code of Conduct may be investigated by the Club and/or FFV, and may be processed by the Club as it sees fit, or in the alternative by FFV as Misconduct in accordance with the FFV GDT.

4. Guiding Principles

This Policy is based on the following principles:

a) the Club has zero tolerance for child abuse;

b) the best interests of the child are paramount;

c) child protection is a shared responsibility;

d) all children have a right to feel safe and be safe when they play football, and have equal rights to protection from abuse;

e) the Club will consider the opinions of players and use their opinions to develop child protection policies and procedures;

f) the Club is committed to the diversity and cultural safety of all children, including (but not limited to) the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, minors from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, minors with disabilities, and make reasonable efforts to accommodate these matters; and

g) everyone covered by the Policy must comply with, and is bound to, the Club’s Child Safety Code of Conduct at all times (Attachment 1).

5. Role of Child Protection Officers the Committee

The Club’s Committee is responsible for ensuring that policies are reviewed and updated and that training exists for committee members, volunteers, coaches, team managers, assistants and employees on child protection matters. The Committee is also responsible for identifying and managing riskin relation to child safety.

Child Protection Officers (CPOs) are available to listen, discuss and clarify issues confronting individuals in our Club. Players, members, employees, volunteers andcommittee members can all speak with a CPO if they have concerns in relation to child abuse. The CPOs will make reports on behalf of the Club and ensure that adequate records are maintained. The Club CPOs will be listed on our club website and identified to all children and parents at the club.

6. Recognising child abuse

Child abuse includes:

a) any act committed against a child involving

a. a sexual offence; or

b. an offence under section 498(2) of the Crimes Act (grooming); or

b) the infliction, on a child, of

a. physical violence; or

b. serious emotional or psychological harm; or

c) serious neglect of a child.

For the purposes of this policy “Child” (or minor) means a person who participates at the Club under the age of 18 years, unless otherwise stated under the law applicable to the child.

7. Reporting obligations

Mandatory reporting

1. Under the Crimes Act, all persons have a legal obligation to inform police as soon as practicable where they have a reasonable belief that a sexual offence has been committed in Victoria against a child (under the age of 16 years) by another person (of or over the age of 18 years).

2. This legal obligation above is subject to a person having a reasonable excuse for not reporting. A person will have a “reasonable excuse” to not report if that person:• fears for the safety of any person (other than the alleged perpetrator of the offence) if they were to disclose the information to police, or • believes on reasonable grounds that the information has already been disclosed to police and they have no further information.

3. The Club supports and encourages committee members, employees or volunteers, coaches or team managers to make a report to the police if they form a belief on reasonable grounds that a child is in need of protection, or they are concerned about the safety, health or wellbeing of a child. Where a report is made to the police or DHHS, we ask the individual to also advise the Club.

4. Any committee member, employee or volunteer, coach or team manager that makes a report in good faith in accordance with their reporting obligations will be supported by the Club and will not be penalised.

5. If a committee member, employee or volunteer, coach or team manager is uncertain as to whether they should make a report to an external authority in relation to the safety of a child, they must speak to the CPO (or FFV) for guidance and information. Ultimately, it is a personal decision of the committee member, employee or volunteer employee or coach or team manager whether they choose to make a report to an external authority or not.

6. If an allegation is made against a committee member, employee or volunteer, coach or team manager, the CPO will follow the reporting procedure and take all steps to ensure that safety of the child is paramount.

Voluntary reporting

In addition to the mandatory reporting obligations above, any person who believes on reasonable grounds that a child is in need of protection from child abuse, may disclose that information to the police. The Club encourages all persons to speak with the CPO (or FFV) for guidance or support with addressing such concerns.

What are “Reasonable grounds for belief”?

You have “reasonable grounds” to notify when:

a) a minor tells you that he/she has been physically or sexually abused;

b) a minor states that they know someone who has been physically or sexually abused (sometimes the minor may be talking about themselves);

c) someone else, such as a relative, friend, acquaintance or sibling of the minor, tells you that a child has been abused;

d) your observations of the minor’s behaviour or knowledge of children lead you to believe that the child has been abused; or

e) you observe physical signs or indicators of abuse (e.g. bruises, cuts etc.).The club encourages reporting where you hold a concern about the safety of a minor.

8. Prevention

Risk Management

The Club will ensure that child safety is a part of its overall risk management approach.

As part of its risk management strategy and practices, the Club will monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the implementation of its risk controls. The Club will ensure that appropriate training is conducted for:

• Committee members• Coaches, team managers and volunteers; and

• Employees.

Information will be provided to players (or for players such as Miniroos and Junior teams) to their parents/carers, about child safety.

The Club will also ensure that all committee members, volunteers, coaches, team managers, and employcccees are provided with ongoing supervision and support such that their performance is developed and enhanced to promote the establishment and maintenance of a child-safe environment.

Communication

The Club is pro-active in the area of prevention and will communicate the Child Protection Policy, Procedure and Code of Conduct in the manner below.