School Sport Victoria Codes of Conduct - Child Safety

If you need assistance understanding this information, please contact us:

• Email: school.sport.victoria@education.vic.gov.au
• Phone: (03) 9084 9001

School Sport Victoria (SSV) is a child safe organisation. These Codes of Conduct sets out the expected behaviour of adults and children and young people who are involved with SSV.

SSV is responsible for the organisation and administration of school sport for member schools at the Primary and Secondary level. SSV currently conducts Championships in a number of sports at Primary and Secondary levels.

The Codes of Conduct - Child Safety aim to protect children and reduce any opportunities for abuse or harm to occur. They should be read in conjunction with SSV Codes of Conduct - SSV events.

The Codes of Conduct apply to all people involved in SSV activities including all the SSV Advisory Committee members, SSV staff, volunteers, agents, contractors, member schools, life members, ambassadors, teachers, coaches, sporting officials, parents, spectators, administrators and all other persons who are involved in supervising school sport.

School Sport Victoria (SSV) is committed to safety, participation and empowerment of all children through participation in sport.

All of the SSV Advisory Committee members, SSV staff, volunteers, agents, contractors, member schools, life members, ambassadors, students, teachers, coaches, sporting officials, parents, spectators, administrators and all other persons who are involved in supervising school sport must abide by the Codes of Conduct - Child Safety and Codes of Conduct - SSV events, which specifies the standards of conduct required when working with children.

All SSV events will be conducted under the Codes of Conduct Child Safety and the Codes of Conduct - SSV events.

Any breaches of either Codes of Conduct policies will be dealt with under breaches and/or failure to comply sections of relevant Department policies.

All of the SSV Advisory Committee members, SSV staff, volunteers, agents, contractors, member schools, life members, ambassadors, teachers and volunteers associated with member schools, coaches, sporting officials, administrators and all other persons who are involved in supervising school sport must, if required: 

a) Uphold Department's Child Safe Policies at all times. 

b) Take all reasonable steps to protect children from abuse or harm. 

c) Follow SSV's Child Safety Responding and Reporting Procedures if required. 

d) Ensuring, as far as possible, that adults are not alone with a student. One to one interactions between an adult and a student are to be in an open space or in line of sight of another adult. 

e) Report any allegations of child abuse or any child safety concerns to School Sport Victoria CEO.

f) Report any incident, disclosure or suspicion of child abuse occurs onsite at any other organisation that is required to comply with the Child Safe Standards to the Child Safety Officer of that organisation. 

g) Understand and comply with all reporting or disclosure obligations (including mandatory reporting) as they relate to protecting children from harm or abuse. 

h) Listen and respond to the views and concerns of students, particularly if they are telling you that they or another child has been abused or harmed or that they are worried about their safety/ the safety of another child. 

i) If child abuse is suspected, act as quickly as possible to make the students safe and protected from harm. 

j) Promote the cultural safety, participation and empowerment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. 

k) Promote the cultural safety, participation and empowerment of students with culturally and/or linguistically diverse backgrounds. 

l) Promote the safety, participation and empowerment of LGBTIQ young people (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer and questioning). 

m) Promote the safety, participation and empowerment of students with a disability. 

n) Promote the safety of children who don't live at home or international students.

All of the SSV Advisory Committee members, SSV staff, volunteers, agents, contractors, member schools, life members, ambassadors, teachers and volunteers associated with member schools, coaches, sporting officials, administrators and all other persons who are involved in supervising school sport must not: 

a) Ignore or disregard any concerns, suspicions or disclosures of child abuse. 

b) Develop a relationship with any student that could be seen as favoritism or amount to 'grooming' behaviour (for example offering gifts or benefits). 

c) Exhibit behaviour or engage in activities with students which may make a student feel uncomfortable or unsure or may be interpreted as intrusive or abusive or not justified by the educational or therapeutic purpose or the delivery of SSV events/Team Vic. 

d) Ignore behaviour by other adults towards students when they appear to be over familiar or inappropriate. 

e) Discuss content of an intimate nature or use sexual innuendo with students, except where it occurs relevantly in the context of a therapeutic setting or parental guidance. 

f) Treat a child less favourably because of the disability, age, gender, race, culture, vulnerability, sexuality or ethnicity. 

g) Communicate directly with a student through personal or private contact channels (including social media, email, instant messaging, texting etc) except where that communication is authorized and relates to and is limited to SSV events/Team Vic or where there is a safety concern or other urgent matter and where is it appropriate to do so, their parent/carer is also included in the communication. 

h) Photograph or video a child in a school sport environment except in accordance with SSV Privacy Policy or where expressly required for duty of care purposes. 

i) Consume alcohol or take illicit drugs under any circumstances at any school sport setting.