Frequently asked questions

Recordkeeping

• Where do I keep my report and the acknowledgement received from the Department for Child Protection?

Does this affect me?

• I’m a visiting medical practitioner (VMP) – do I have to do the information session?
• Do nurses who work as technicians need to do the information session?

Concerns for reporters

• I work in an area where it would be very easy to identify me as the reporter – how does the legislation protect me?
• I work in an area where it would be very easy to identify me as the reporter – what can I do about ensuring my safety?
• Should I tell the child’s parents or carers that I am going to make or have made a report?
• What happens if someone requests information pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act 1992?
• What if I report a belief that a child has been or is being sexually abused and I’m wrong?
• What if I don’t make a report, based on my belief that there are insufficient grounds to warrant a report, and then the child is subsequently found to have been sexually abused?
• Will I get called or subpoenaed to go to court if I make a report?

Determining whether to make a report

• I am a Mandatory Reporter. What should I do when a child or young person has disclosed sexual abuse that occurred prior to the 1st January 2009 and I have formed a reasonable belief that they are being sexually abused.
• If there are a group of mandatory reporters in a conference, and they all form a belief about a child being sexually abused, do they all have to put in a report?
• Should I make a report if I identify physical evidence of sexual activity in a child who I believe is below the legal age for consenting to sexual activity?
• The Department for Child Protection is involved and has referred a child to me for assessment or as part of an investigation. Am I responsible for undertaking an inquiry to determine if a mandatory report has already been made?