The launch of the national One Talk at a Time campaign, which aims to help prevent child sexual abuse by encouraging adults to have ongoing, proactive conversations with children, young people and other adults has been welcomed by The MacKillop Institute.
Focused on delivering evidence-informed programs that promote and strengthen child safety, and school and organisational wellbeing, The MacKillop Institute understands that ongoing, proactive and preventative conversations from adults have the power to change outcomes.
The recent Australian Child Maltreatment Study provided some shocking statistics about the prevalence of child sexual abuse in Australia, including that almost 1 in 4 Australians have experienced sexual abuse before the age of 18 (ACMS, 2023).
For children and young people living in out-of-home care, these statistics are even more shocking. Despite accounting for only 5% of all children in care, children in residential care account for 33% of child sexual exploitation reports on children in care in Australia (Royal Commission, 2016).
Children and young people living in out-of-home care have often experienced repeated family violence, trauma, and displacement, making them highly vulnerable to child sexual exploitation, harmful sexual behaviours, and dating violence.
The vulnerability of young people living in out-of-home care led to the development of the Power to Kids program, designed by MacKillop Family Services and the University of Melbourne to respond to child sexual abuse in residential care and to upskill staff at residential care homes across Australia. The program was developed to address several recommendations made by the Royal Commission on Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.
Power to Kids National Program Director Smeeta Singh said upskilling carers to lead conversations, build trust and educate children is critical to the success of the model.
“Like the One Talk at a Time campaign, the Power to Kids program harnesses the ‘brave conversations’ model, upskilling carers and giving them the confidence to have ‘brave conversations’ about sexual safety. The program builds carers' capabilities to prevent, identify, and intervene early when they see indicators of abuse,” said Smeeta.
Skilled carers play a crucial role in empowering children and young people with information about healthy relationships and sexual safety, and knowledge about when and how to reach out for support.
“We know that conversations about sexual safety can be difficult. This is why carers need training and support to confidently talk to children and young people. They also need clear, practical resources and prevention and early intervention strategies to respond to risks as they arise.
“Power to Kids continues to build upon the strategies in the One Talk at a Time Campaign and has been designed to support residential carers to have these conversations with young people in care. Young people in residential care are particularly vulnerable to sexual exploitation and abuse, so a multi-tiered approach is crucial to support the young person to identify healthy relationships, and support the carer to have conversations, and identify and respond to risk. Residential carers are also often working from a position where a strong attachment has not yet been formed with the young person, making it challenging to have brave conversations – but not impossible,” said Smeeta.
The good news is, it’s working. In 2020, the program was recommended for implementation across the state of Victoria by the Victorian Commissioner for Children and Young People, Liana Buchanan. Since then, the Power to Kids program has reached 40+ organisations and over 1000 carers.
We’re currently working on an adaptation of the Power to Kids program for schools, to equip educators and support staff with the confidence to engage in preventative sexual health and safety conversations with young people; implement preventative strategies; and work collaboratively with parents and caregivers to safeguard children from sexual exploitation.
About The MacKillop Institute
At The MacKillop Institute we provide a suite of evidence-informed programs that strengthen child safety practices and promote school and organisational wellbeing. We work with government, community, educational, and corporate organisations across Australia and internationally.
