Child Safe Organisations Bill 2024
Bill Story
The journey of this bill through Parliament, including debate and recorded votes.
Referred to Community Support and Services Committee
▸11 members spoke11 support
As Minister for Child Safety, introduced and defended the bill implementing royal commission recommendations for child safe standards and reportable conduct scheme.
“The Child Safe Organisations Bill 2024 takes an important step towards ensuring our children have the best environments to learn, play and grow.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
As Shadow Minister, welcomed the bill but criticised the seven-year delay in implementing royal commission recommendations, arguing the government had disregarded victims.
“The LNP welcomes the changes and we will support them throughout the debate. They are the right changes we need to increase the safety of children in the organisations they interact with, but they are long overdue.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
Supported the bill but heavily criticised the government for taking seven years to implement royal commission recommendations, announcing LNP's commitment to a major inquiry into child protection failures if elected.
“The only way that you will actually get change and have a team that has a plan for change to protect our children is to vote for change on 26 October and show Labor the door in 2024.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
As Committee Chair, commended the bill for implementing child safe standards and reportable conduct scheme, noting strong stakeholder support during committee deliberations.
“There is no denying that our number one priority as a community is to ensure the safety of our children.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
Supported the bill implementing royal commission recommendations but raised concerns about costs for smaller organisations and the need for government support during implementation.
“Every time we hear in the news that a child has been sexually exploited, we ask what more could have been done to prevent this abuse.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
Supported the bill as implementing vital safeguards for children across Queensland organisations, emphasising the need for widespread cultural change.
“What this bill says is that child protection is our community's and society's responsibility and we are working towards minimising the risk of harm to our children together.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
Supported the bill as implementing child safe standards and reportable conduct scheme recommended by the royal commission, emphasising capacity building approach.
“The Queensland government has accepted, or accepted in principle, all of the child safe standards and reportable conduct scheme recommendations.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
Supported the bill while noting concerns raised by Queensland Foster and Kinship Care about unintended effects on family-based care.
“We support this bill. While we support it, I note the concerns raised by Queensland Foster and Kinship Care about any unintended effect of the bill on family-based care.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
Supported the bill but criticised the seven-year delay, sharing his 20-year involvement with Bravehearts and praising child safety advocates.
“These bills demonstrate that child safety is an ongoing responsibility that requires all of us to pay attention. It requires a government to take meaningful action without delay.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
Supported the reforms but criticised the truncated debate time and noted concerns about implementation challenges for rural and regional councils providing childcare services.
“These are important reforms, but if the Labor government really cared about our children then they would have allowed a full and frank debate on them.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
Supported the bill but delivered strong criticism of the seven-year delay, arguing families in her community paid a horrific price for the government's inaction on child safety reforms.
“This government's failure to take action when it mattered, seven years ago, has left children vulnerable, and they have paid the most horrific price.”— 2024-09-11View Hansard
Plain English Summary
Overview
This bill creates Queensland's child safe organisations system, implementing key recommendations from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. It requires organisations working with children to meet 10 Child Safe Standards and establishes a Reportable Conduct Scheme where allegations of child abuse by workers must be reported to and investigated under the oversight of the Queensland Family and Child Commission.
Who it affects
Organisations that provide services or facilities for children—including schools, childcare centres, sports clubs, religious bodies, disability services, and health services—must now comply with mandatory child safety standards and report allegations against their workers. Children across Queensland gain stronger protections.
Key changes
- Mandatory 10 Child Safe Standards for all organisations working with children, including a Universal Principle for cultural safety of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children
- Reportable Conduct Scheme requiring organisations to report and investigate allegations of child sexual offences, sexual misconduct, ill-treatment, neglect, physical violence, and significant emotional or psychological harm by workers
- Queensland Family and Child Commission given oversight powers including monitoring, compliance notices, enforceable undertakings, and own-motion investigations
- Information sharing framework between Commission, sector regulators, police, and interstate bodies to support child safety
- Phased commencement from October 2025 (Child Safe Standards) and July 2026 (Reportable Conduct Scheme)
- Risk Management Strategy requirements under the Working with Children Act replaced by the new Child Safe Standards