Our commitment to safeguarding children and young people
We are committed to protecting the rights of all children and young people to feel safe and be safe.
We take seriously our responsibility to provide a caring, nurturing and safe environment for children and young people participating in our activities, services or programs. Our team members work passionately to create conditions within which children and young people can grow, heal and be protected from harm. This includes being attentive to their needs for physical, psychological, emotional, social and cultural safety.
Luma has a zero tolerance to racism and other forms of discrimination and seeks to provide an accessible and welcoming space where children and young people are empowered to express all aspects of themselves and their identities. We welcome feedback on how we can improve and strengthen these practices.
We are committed to ensuring that our people are safe and responsive to the needs of children and young people.
We consider safeguarding children and young people to be a shared responsibility. It is reliant on all individuals within our organisation, regardless of their role, to place the best interest of children and young people at the core of all actions and decisions concerning their safety and wellbeing.
Luma upholds robust screening and recruitment processes and ensures that staff are appropriately trained to engage with children and young people and are equipped to respond to safety concerns if they arise. Our policies, procedures and practices seek to address possible risks to child safety and to establish a preventative, safeguarding culture.
We have an induction and training process that ensures all new staff members, students and volunteers are informed and supported to understand our organisations safeguarding children and young people policies, procedures and practices. All staff are required to sign a Code of Conduct and adhere to our Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy and our Child Safety and Reporting Child Abuse Policy. We provide guidance and support to our people on how to respond to disclosures, allegations or concerns in relation to the abuse or neglect of a child or young person. Any failure to observe these policies and guidelines is taken seriously and disciplinary action will be taken wherever necessary.
The ways we keep children and young people safe at Luma
- We create, maintain and protect a child safe culture
- We behave professionally and with care
- We use appropriate language and tone of voice
- We act respectfully and inclusively of all backgrounds and abilities, including working in ways that support cultural safety
- We protect children and young people from all forms of abuse, bullying and exploitation
- We honour professional role boundaries and provide appropriate supervision
- We limit physical contact to only what is appropriate or necessary
- We seek permission before giving any gifts
- We follow clear guidelines around taking/use of photos, and ensure any digital communication is appropriate and consented by the parent or caregiver
- We ensure our staff are not under the influence of alcohol, illegal drugs and/or incapacitated in anyway
- We give you access to information, support and complaints processes
We are committed to working alongside children, young people and their families and want to hear from them.
We value, respect and do our best to listen to children and young people. We seek to empower children and young people by informing them of their rights and responsibilities and supporting them to speak up about any matters of importance to them, including if something goes wrong. We work to include the participation of children and young people in decision making regarding any services or other matters affecting them. We take feedback seriously, regardless of a person’s age and will always listen with respect.
We respect diversity and seek to facilitate accessible and effective communication and engagement. Appropriate attention is paid to the needs of children and young people with a disability, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people, children and young people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender or Intersex (LGBTI+) children and young people and those unable to live at home.