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Pathways Victoria Information Session Webinar

Duration: Approximately 45 minutes.

In this recorded information session, Dr Katherine Levi (Director, Safeguarding Unit of the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne) introduces you to Stephanie Thirlwall (Response and Resolutions Director, Pathways Victoria).

During the information session you will learn more about how Pathways Victoria operates and works to support victims of abuse. In particular the role of Pathways Victoria is discussed in relation to supporting victims and survivors of abuse, responding to allegations and providing a mechanism for the resolution of matters.

This information session also explores how the Safeguarding Unit of the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne will work with Pathways Victoria and what this means for parishes.

This recording is designed for Clergy, parish staff, parish leadership, Safeguarding Committee members and those working directly with children and young people in parish groups/programs/ministries.

Resources relevant to the webinar:

Empowering Children and Young People Webinar (July 2022)

Please note this is a recording of webinar held on 20 July 2022.

Duration: 1 hour 08 minutes

This webinar is aimed at clergy, safeguarding committee members and those working directly with children and young people.

The Victorian Child Safe Standards and the National Catholic Safeguarding Standards require organisations to embed their commitment to child safety within their culture, policies, procedures and practices, and to prioritise the safety of children and young people.

These frameworks also highlight the need for children and young people to be empowered and to be active participants in their organisations. Organisations are required to ensure that children and young people are engaged and informed about their rights and personal safety, while also being listened to and heard.

In this webinar we explore these questions:

  • What does empowerment and participation of children and young people mean?
  • Why is empowerment important?
  • What does this look like in the parish context?

We also hear from the following guest panellists, who share their experiences of positively empowering children and young people in their Catholic communities:

  • Pauline Duff—Safeguarding Committee member at Kilmore Parish
  • Carmel Barker—Safeguarding Committee member at Mordialloc/Aspendale Parish
  • Fr Trac Nguyen—Assistant Priest at Camberwell, Balwyn, Deepdene parishes and Surrey Hills/Wattle Park parishes.

Facilitated by Luisa Pisano (Safeguarding Officer—Professional Standards Unit), Tamara Cugnetto (Safeguarding Manager—Professional Standards Unit) and Silvana Scarfe (Discipleship Specialist—Young Adults and Campus Ministry, Proclaim: Office for Mission Renewal).

Resources relevant to the webinar:

CAM Resources

Other resources

Victorian Child Safe Standards Information Session Webinar Recording

Duration: Approximately 42 minutes.

The new Victorian Child Safe Standards (VCSS) come into effect 1 July, 2022. In this webinar recording the Professional Standards Unit from the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne (CAM), provide an introductory explanation of the new standards and discuss what the changes will mean for Archdiocesan parishes, agencies and entities. A guided comparison between the existing CAM Safeguarding Children and Young People Framework to the new VCSS is outlined and implementation hints for parishes, agencies and entities to enact changes at a practical level are explored.

This recording is designed for Clergy, parish leadership, Safeguarding Committee members and those working directly with children and young people in parish groups/programs/ministries.

Resources relevant to the webinar:

Aboriginal cultural safety—a conversation with Sherry Balcombe and Michael Chisholm

Duration: Approximately 30 minutes.

Loretta Hoban (Policy Advisor, Professional Standards Unit) leads a conversation with Sherry Balcombe (Manager, Aboriginal Catholic Ministry Victoria) and Michael Chisholm (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Team Lead—Sandhurst Diocese) to discuss the concept of cultural safety and its importance within our parishes.

This conversation explores cultural safety at an introductory level while considering what the application of culturally safe practices looks like in a parish context.

Planning service and outreach programs and parish events—a risk-management approach

Duration: Approximately 29 minutes.

Co-facilitated by the Professional Standards Unit and Catholic Church Insurance (CCI), this recording highlights how parishes can use a risk management approach to identify, mitigate or remove risks when planning for parish events as well as service and outreach programs. This video aims to increase your understanding of the types of risks (safeguarding and other) to be considered when organising a parish event and/or service and outreach program. You will also see and hear practical examples of the risk assessment process for a parish event and service and outreach program.

This recording is designed for Clergy, Safeguarding Committee members and those working directly with children and young people in parish groups/programs/ministries.

Resources relevant to the webinar:

Safeguarding Risk Management Webinar

Duration: 1 hour 23 minutes. Please note this is a recording of the webinar held on 24 August 2021.

The Victorian Child Safe Standards and the National Catholic Safeguarding Standards require organisations to embed their commitment to child safety within their parish culture, policies, procedures and practices and to prioritise the safety of children and young people. These frameworks also highlight the need for parishes to take preventive steps to ensure that children and young people are safe by requiring parishes to undertake risk management.

In this webinar we explore:

  • What is risk management?
  • Why it is risk management important?
  • How to identify safeguarding risks within a parish context.

We also hear from four guest panelists, who are Safeguarding Committee members at their respective parishes. Each panelist shares their experiences of successfully managing safeguarding risks within their parish. The panel consists of:

  • Peter Evans - Business Manager at Rowville Parish
  • Lisa Brick - Safeguarding Committee member at the Bayside Catholic Mission
  • Peter Williams - Child Safeguarding Officer at the Montmorency and Eltham Parishes
  • Rodney Dearing - Safeguarding Committee member at Grovedale Parish

Facilitated by Tamara Cugnetto, Safeguarding Manager (Professional Standards Unit) and Sandra George, Risk Consultant (Catholic Church Insurance), this webinar is aimed at Clergy, Parish leadership and Safeguarding Committee members.

Resources relevant to the webinar:

Obligations to Report Child Abuse: Overview for Clergy

Duration: 40 minutes

Presented by the Professional Standards Unit of the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne, this e-learning video is designed for people in religious ministry including:

  • Bishops
  • Priests
  • Religious brothers and sisters
  • Deacons

This e-learning video provides an overview of the legislative requirements that exist in Victoria, which were introduced after the Betrayal of Trust Inquiry and the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. The e-learning video addresses the policy obligations of people in religious ministry as described in the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne’s Safeguarding Children and Young People Framework.

Key areas addressed in the e-learning video include:

  • The legislative and policy obligations in relation to reporting child abuse
  • The importance of making a report
  • How to make a report
  • Whom to make a report to within Victoria

Resources relevant to these e-Learning videos:

Effective Safeguarding Committee Training

This e-Learning video is designed for those who are involved in the implementation of child safety policies and procedures within a Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne parish, agency or entity. As each parish, agency or entity is required to form a Safeguarding Committee, we discuss the role of this committee, suitability of candidates for the role and how this committee might operate.

In this video, we explore responsibilities and legislative requirements in relation to the implementation and compliance with the Safeguarding Framework Children and Young People Framework informed by the Victorian Child Safe Standards, National Principles of Child Safe Organisations and the National Catholic Safeguarding Standards. Throughout the video, practical examples of a parish working through the Safeguarding Framework are shown and discussed, with this culminating in an overview of the self-assessment tool designed to guide parishes, agencies and entity through the requirements of the Framework.

Resources relevant to this e-Learning video:

Empowering Children and Young People Training

Duration: 60 minutes

The Empowering Children and Young People e-learning video explores the important role that children’s empowerment can play as a protective factor within organisational contexts. This is an important element of the Safeguarding Framework as identified by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse and is often an area that many individuals and organisations struggle to comprehend and implement.

This e-Learning video is designed for those who work with children and young people in a parish, agency or entity context including:

  • Parish priest
  • Safeguarding Committee members
  • Pastoral associate
  • Sacramental Preparation Leaders
  • Youth Group Leaders
  • Children’s Liturgy Leaders
  • Children’s Choir Leaders

In this video, we explore children’s rights and responsibilities as well as the legislative requirements in relation to children’s participation in organisations. Throughout the video, we demonstrate what child participation and engagement looks like in a parish context by using practical examples, hearing from children themselves, highlighting parish case studies, conducting a gap analysis of a parish group working directly with children as well as exploring the parish self-assessment tool.

Resources relevant to this e-Learning video:

Safeguarding Risk Management Fundamentals (3-part series)

Co-facilitated by the Professional Standards Unit and Catholic Church Insurance (CCI), the Safeguarding Risk Management Fundamentals e-Learning video modules provide participants with an understanding of the different types of safeguarding risks that your parish may face. Presented over three (3) short modules, the Safeguarding Risk Management Fundamentals e-Learning video is designed to increase your understanding of the types of safeguarding risks within your parish, and develop your understanding of how to conduct a risk assessment in a formalised way.

Module 1: Overview of possible safeguarding risks within a parish context

Module 2: Conducting a parish risk assessment

Module 3: How to address identified risks

Resources relevant to these e-Learning videos:

Responding to and Reporting Abuse (3-part series)

Duration: This series will be presented over three 30 minute videos

This e-learning series on responding and reporting abuse will provide an overview of understanding the definitions of abuse, responding to disclosures and reporting these disclosures. These modules should be completed sequentially as each one builds on the information from the previous module. These videos are designed for all clergy, staff and volunteers of the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne, and will be particularly helpful for safeguarding committee members.

Module 1: Defining Abuse

Module 2: Responding to a Disclosure

Module 3: Reporting Abuse

Resources relevant to these e-Learning videos:

Staying Connected Online with Children and Young People

These videos were shown as part of a webinar in August 2020 hosted by Proclaim: The Office for Mission Renewal and the Professional Standards Unit.

This webinar was designed to promote connection with children and young people in an online environment, especially during the challenges of COVID-19. This introductory session aims to:

  • Highlight the importance of parish “connection” and “belonging” for children and young people
  • Help your parish to start planning how to deliver your programs and activities online
  • Provide an overview of some key e-safety considerations
  • Provide some examples of parish engagement with children and young people

Sacramental Preparation Online

Duration: 14 minutes

In this example, Sandy Starbuck (Pastoral Associate of Christ the Light Parish Mernda, Doreen and Whittlesea) shares how sacramental preparation can take place in an online setting.

Youth Group Online

Duration: Approximately 10 minutes

In this video, Natasha from Good Shepherd Parish in Gladstone Park shares how youth group meetings and ministry can take place in an online setting.

Resources relevant to these e-Learning videos:

Safeguarding

At the heart of who we are is not all the buildings but the person of Jesus Christ, who enters into our lives and who we then share with others.

Archbishop Peter A Comensoli