Building on its longstanding commitment to child safeguarding, CatholicCare Sydney has launched its Child Safe Action Plan 2026–2029, outlining an organisation-wide approach to further strengthening the safety, wellbeing, rights and participation of babies, children and young people.
The three-year plan provides a clear and measurable roadmap for embedding the NSW Office of the Children’s Guardian’s Child Safe Standards across all CatholicCare Sydney services, systems and practices.
Developed through extensive consultation, the plan reflects CatholicCare Sydney’s commitment to creating environments where children and young people are not only protected from harm, but feel safe, respected, listened to and empowered to thrive.
Underpinned by CatholicCare Sydney’s CHILD Framework, the plan brings together Child Safeguarding, Child Protection and Child-Centred Practice, recognising children and young people as rights holders whose voices and experiences should inform the decisions that affect them.
Child voice and participation are reflected throughout the Action Plan, including in its design. Artwork created especially for the plan by four-year-old Max brings a child’s perspective directly into the document, providing a visual reminder that children should not only be at the centre of this work, but have meaningful opportunities to contribute to it.
The Action Plan focuses on four strategic priorities:
- Strengthening Safeguarding Awareness and Culture: Making child safety a visible, proactive and shared responsibility across the organisation.
- Embedding Safeguarding Across the Employee Lifecycle: Strengthening safeguarding practices from recruitment and onboarding through to performance management and professional development.
- Enhancing Safety and Quality Improvement: Improving systems for identifying and responding to risks, listening to feedback and driving continuous improvement.
- Developing Workforce Capability: Building the knowledge, confidence and skills of employees and volunteers through ongoing safeguarding education and professional learning.
CatholicCare Sydney CEO, Mr Richard Timbs, said the plan represents an important step in ensuring child safety and children's rights remain central to the organisation's culture and service delivery.
“Every baby, child and young person has the right to feel safe, to be heard and to have their experiences and perspectives respected.
“Our Child Safe Action Plan reinforces that safeguarding is not simply a matter of compliance. It is a shared responsibility that must be embedded in our culture, our decisions and every interaction we have with children, young people and their families.
“Importantly, this work recognises children and young people as active participants in their own lives. Their voices must help shape the services they access and the environments in which they feel safe.
“Through this plan, we are strengthening our systems, investing in our people and building a culture of accountability and continuous improvement, ensuring the safety, rights and wellbeing of children and young people remain at the heart of everything we do.”
CatholicCare Sydney maintains a zero-tolerance approach to child abuse and recognises the importance of inclusive, culturally responsive and trauma-informed safeguarding practices, particularly for children and young people who may experience increased vulnerability due to systemic inequalities.
The Action Plan has been informed by the NSW Child Safe Standards, National Principles for Child Safe Organisations, National Catholic Safeguarding Standards and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Through the Child Safe Action Plan 2026–2029, CatholicCare Sydney reaffirms its commitment to building a culture where safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and every child and young person is safe, valued and empowered to thrive.
