Family Violence Support

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Policy

This purpose of this policy is to:

• support school staff to identify and respond to family violence
• support school staff to understand and action their school’s responsibilities under the Family Violence Multi-Agency Risk Assessment and Management Framework (MARAM)
• explain the supports available for students, parents and staff experiencing family violence.

Summary

• Schools are prescribed as MARAM framework organisations and are required to follow MARAM processes to identify and respond to family violence.
• All school staff are responsible for identifying and responding to family violence. Refer to All staff responsibilities.
• School leaders are responsible for supporting all staff to identify and respond to family violence and identifying 2 to 3 MARAM nominated staff. Refer to School leader responsibilities.
• MARAM nominated staff are responsible for screening for family violence and making basic safety plans, making referrals to specialist services and collaborating to provide ongoing support. Refer to MARAM nominated staff responsibilities.
• Guidance and tools to support school staff to identify and respond to family violence in a safe and consistent way are available in the Guidance and Resources tabs.
• Following this policy and guidance, and using the tools in the Resources tab, ensures schools are meeting their legal obligations under MARAM.
• Mandatory reporting requirements, duty of care and the Child Safe Standards continue to apply and must be followed as outlined on the PROTECT website.

Details

About MARAM

MARAM aims to build a consistent approach and shared responsibility across Victoria’s service system by requiring framework organisations to use consistent tools and procedures to identify and respond to family violence. Alongside schools, key services such as Victoria Police, family violence specialist services, Child Protection and hospitals across Victoria are also prescribed framework organisations.

For further, detailed information about the MARAM framework and how it applies to all sectors, refer to Family Violence Multi-Agency Risk Assessment and Framework.

Following this policy and guidance, and using the tools in the Resources tab, ensures schools are meeting their legal obligations under MARAM.

Roles and responsibilities for implementing MARAM in schools

Identifying and responding to family violence is a shared responsibility between:

• school leaders
• all school staff
• MARAM nominated staff.

Under MARAM, schools have 6 responsibilities relating to ‘identification and screening’. These are:

• Responsibility 1: Respectful, sensitive and safe engagement
• Responsibility 2: Identification of family violence
• Responsibility 5: Seek consultation for comprehensive risk assessment, risk management and referrals
• Responsibility 6: Contribute to information sharing with other services (as authorised by legislation) (this includes FVISS and can also include CISS)
• Responsibility 9: Contribute to coordinated risk management
• Responsibility 10: Collaborate for ongoing risk assessment and risk management.

For guidance and tools to support school leaders, school staff and MARAM nominated staff to meet their responsibilities, refer to the Guidance and Resources tabs.

Support for employees experiencing family violence

Support is available to all DE staff members. For further information, refer to Family Violence – Information for Employees.

Department Employee Wellbeing Support Services

Employee Wellbeing Support Services provides free and confidential advice to proactively support Victorian government school staff wellbeing. Services include:

• Employee Assist provides support and counselling for various personal and work-related issues.
• Manager Assist provides dedicated coaching support to people managers.
• Conflict Assist provides strategies, tools and coaching to deal with difficult workplace and personal situations. This is not a replacement for the conflict resolution support service available to staff currently.
• Family Assist provides counselling for eligible school staff and their immediate family members (aged 18 and over) needing support with personal concerns. Short-term counselling for small family groups (aged 18 and over) or couples is also available.

For more information, refer to: Employee Wellbeing Support Services.

Workplace Contact Officer Network

The Workplace Contact Officer (WCO) network is a group of staff who have volunteered and been trained as a point of contact for colleagues experiencing harassment, discrimination, bullying, victimisation or family violence to provide information, guidance and resources.

Refer to: Workplace Contact Officer Network.

Employees using family violence

If school staff are provided with information that leads them to form a reasonable belief that any of the following behaviours have been engaged in by a DE or Victorian Government School Council employee or volunteer:

• a sexual offence (even prior to criminal proceedings commencing), sexual misconduct or physical violence committed against, with or in the presence of a child
• behaviour causing significant emotional or psychological harm
• significant neglect of a child
• misconduct involving any of the above

they must follow the reporting requirements set out in the department’s Reportable and Notifiable Conduct policy.

Related policies

• Child and Family Violence Information Sharing Schemes
• Child Safe Standards
• Duty of Care
• Family Violence – Information for Employees
• Occupational Health, Safety and Wellbeing Management in Schools
• Privacy and Information Sharing
• Protecting Children – Reporting and Other Legal Obligations
• Reportable Conduct

Relevant legislation

• Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 (Vic)
• Child Wellbeing and Safety Act 2005 (Vic)
• Child Wellbeing and Safety (Information Sharing) Regulations 2018 (Vic)
• Family Violence Protection Act 2008 (Vic)
• Family Violence Protection (Information Sharing and Risk Management) Regulations 2018 (Vic)

Contact

For further advice and support in relation to:

• supporting students who may be experiencing family violence
• educating students and other members of the school community about family violence

schools may contact their regional Respectful Relationships Liaison Officer. For contact details, refer to: Respectful Relationships Liaison Officers (DOCX) (staff login required).

For policy and contact details in relation to concerns that a DET or school council employee or volunteer is using family violence, refer to Reportable and Notifiable Conduct.

For information and advice on supporting school staff members affected by family violence, refer to Family Violence – Information for Employees.

For feedback and general queries about this policy contact family.violence.practice.branch@education.vic.gov.au

Further information about external supports on family violence is available on the Resources tab.