https://community.ebay.com.au/t5/Community-Spirit/Watchdog-call-for-children/m-p/769623#M221232 <DIV><DIV class="articleBody"><P>Australia needs a national watchdog to ensure governments, churches and other institutions are following child-safe practices, the Catholic Church has told the royal commission into child sex abuse.</P><P>The church calls for mandatory accreditation and data collection by an independent national body, to cover all institutions working with children, in its submission to the inquiry.</P><P>''We are setting the bar high, but the bar needs to be high,'' church spokesman Francis Sullivan said. ''Self-regulation, as the royal commission has already started to reveal, hasn't worked. We've admitted in the past that we have dropped the ball.''</P><P>Mr Sullivan, chief executive of the church's Truth, Justice and Healing Council, said: ''It's like a watchdog. At present there is none.'' Similar mandatory accreditation and checks already existed in aged care and hospitals.</P><DIV class="hidden">Advertisement<P>Mr Sullivan said there was no fail-safe method to identify people unsuitable to work with children. Current screening usually focused on criminal offences, drugs and violence. ''Organisations need to … get as much information as possible about potential employees that will enable them to minimise risk,'' he said.</P></DIV><BR /><BR />Read more: <A target="_blank" href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/watchdog-call-for-children-20131021-2vx2o.html#ixzz2iOjyjWle">http://www.smh.com.au/national/watchdog-call-for-children-20131021-2vx2o.html#ixzz2iOjyjWle</A></DIV></DIV> Mon, 21 Oct 2013 22:25:49 GMT grandmoon 2013-10-21T22:25:49Z https://community.ebay.com.au/t5/Community-Spirit/Watchdog-call-for-children/m-p/769623#M221232 <DIV><DIV class="articleBody"><P>Australia needs a national watchdog to ensure governments, churches and other institutions are following child-safe practices, the Catholic Church has told the royal commission into child sex abuse.</P><P>The church calls for mandatory accreditation and data collection by an independent national body, to cover all institutions working with children, in its submission to the inquiry.</P><P>''We are setting the bar high, but the bar needs to be high,'' church spokesman Francis Sullivan said. ''Self-regulation, as the royal commission has already started to reveal, hasn't worked. We've admitted in the past that we have dropped the ball.''</P><P>Mr Sullivan, chief executive of the church's Truth, Justice and Healing Council, said: ''It's like a watchdog. At present there is none.'' Similar mandatory accreditation and checks already existed in aged care and hospitals.</P><DIV class="hidden">Advertisement<P>Mr Sullivan said there was no fail-safe method to identify people unsuitable to work with children. Current screening usually focused on criminal offences, drugs and violence. ''Organisations need to … get as much information as possible about potential employees that will enable them to minimise risk,'' he said.</P></DIV><BR /><BR />Read more: <A target="_blank" href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/watchdog-call-for-children-20131021-2vx2o.html#ixzz2iOjyjWle">http://www.smh.com.au/national/watchdog-call-for-children-20131021-2vx2o.html#ixzz2iOjyjWle</A></DIV></DIV> Mon, 21 Oct 2013 22:25:49 GMT https://community.ebay.com.au/t5/Community-Spirit/Watchdog-call-for-children/m-p/769623#M221232 grandmoon 2013-10-21T22:25:49Z https://community.ebay.com.au/t5/Community-Spirit/Watchdog-call-for-children/m-p/769631#M221233 <P>I totally agree<STRONG> BUT </STRONG>who should run it ???</P> Mon, 21 Oct 2013 22:28:14 GMT https://community.ebay.com.au/t5/Community-Spirit/Watchdog-call-for-children/m-p/769631#M221233 grandmoon 2013-10-21T22:28:14Z