Archdiocese set for audit

The Archdiocese of Hobart is set to be evaluated on its safeguarding measures in an upcoming audit conducted by ChildSafe.

The Archdiocese of Hobart’s Safe Communities committee has sourced ChildSafe – a national harm prevention charity – to conduct an audit of the Archdiocesan Safeguarding Policies and Practices. The audit will examine the Archdiocese of Hobart’s compliance with the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations (NPCSO) and the National Catholic Safeguarding Standards (NCSS).

Both the NPCSO and the NCSS emerged from the final report of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, with the NCSS having an additional focus of relating specifically to Catholic entities.

The audit began in mid-September.

“Child safeguarding is a continuous conversation and there is always room to strengthen our safeguarding policies, procedures and training of Church workers,” said Archdiocese of Hobart Safe Communities Officer Danielle Fehlberg.

“The audit will allow us to be open and transparent with the community, and it creates awareness of what we are doing in the Church around safeguarding.”

Since its establishment in 2016, Safe Communities has implemented safeguarding policies and practices throughout the Archdiocese of Hobart to which all Church personnel – including volunteers – must adhere.

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