Certificate of Child Protection and Case Management

Unit 1 – Rights and Safety of Children and Young People

• National Quality Framework (NQF)
• National Quality Standards (NQS)
• Comply with lawful regulations
• Duty of care
• Boundaries of practice
• Child-focused work practices
• Custody orders
• Apprehended Violence Order (AVO’s)
• Authority to collect a child
• Restraining orders
• Supervision orders
• Mandatory reporting
• Care and protection orders
• Appropriate responses and actions
• Updating knowledge and skills
• Policy changes
• Confidentiality
• Intervention objectives
• Community resources
• Personal safety
• Dealing with stress
• Confidentiality
• Disclosure without consent
• Indicators of abuse
• Identify children at risk
• Implement child protection procedures
• Child protection procedures
• Responding and handling disclosure
• Record child information
• Active listening and observation
• Confidentiality
• Cultural diversity
• Highly vulnerable children
• The Children’s Court
• Indicators of child abuse
• Family violence
• Cycle of violence
• Substance abuse
• Mental illness
• Disabilities
• Attachment theory
• Collecting information
• Descriptions of injury
• Reporting suspicions
• Reporting incidents of abuse
• Risk management
• Ethical practices
• Safeguard the rights of children
• Equitable working conditions
• Professional boundaries

Unit 2 –  Work Effectively in Child Protection

• Duty of care policy
• Regulatory, legislative and legal requirements
• Historical and recement developments in child protection
• Boarding out system
• Early legislation
• National initiatives
• Legal and ethical obligations of individuals and organisations
• Mandatory reporting
• Reasonable suspicion
• Types of harm
• Interview process requirements
• Reciprocal reporting requirements
• Organisational policies and procedures
• National Principals for Child Safe Organisations
• Operational policies for best practice
• Case management processes
• Intake and initial assessment
• Stakeholder roles and responsibilities
• Personal values and attitudes
• Cultural assumptions
• Discipline beliefs
• Attachment styles
• Approaches to reflection
• Role of practice principles
• Code of conduct
• Risk assessment in child protection
• Process for assessing harm and risk of harm
• Indicators, effects and dynamics of abuse and neglect
• Complex interplay of multiple risk factors in child protection
• Family violence
• Substance abuse
• Mental Illness
• Disability
• Assessing risk in context of multiple factors
• Risk assessment when working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families
• Risk assessment working children and families from diverse backgrounds
• Risk assessment tools
• Supporting rights, interests and needs
• Supporting children and families through court proceedings
• Role of forensic psychologists in court proceedings
• Carrying out work tasks
• Age appropriate communication
• Trauma-informed, sensitive and respectful communication
• Culturally sensitive communication
• Communicating with families
• Observing lines of accountability
• Communicating to relevant authorities (legislation and policy)
• Ethical and social frameworks
• Challenges of child protection work
• Self-management techniques
• Code of ethics in child protection
• Professional and ethical frameworks
• Developing a safety plan – essential steps
• Aligning safety plans with ethical standards and policies and procedures
• Supporting staff facing ethical dilemmas
• Providing a structured framework
• Challenges of child protection work
• Strategies to address challenges
• Supportive leadership and continuous learning

Unit 3 – Work Within a Practice Framework

• History of child protection
• Legislative requirements
• Mandatory reporting
• Government policies
• Social environments
• Risk and protective factors
• Child abuse and neglect
• Child protection teams
• Professional networks
• Initiatives and reforms
• Signs of Safety framework
• Best Interests Framework
• National quality standards
• Practising reflection
• National Child Protection Framework
• Developing and improving practice

Unit 4 – Undertake Case Management (Child Protection)

• Assess client needs and risks
• Develop assessment plan
• Explain worker’s role and purpose
• Prioritise relevant information
• Support and prevention strategies
• Intervention process
• Client rights of appeal
• Case plan management
• Client strengths
• Protective factors
• Addressing client needs
• Negotiate client goals
• Roles and responsibilities
• Contingency plans
• Cultural considerations
• Document case plan
• Evaluation processes
• Case review
• Need for ongoing intervention
• Complete reporting procedures
• Supervisor consultation
• Case conferences
• Protection meetings
• Identify purpose of conference
• Establish agenda
• identify key persons
• Prepare client for meeting
• Anticipate conflict
• Facilitate conflict resolution
• Identify participant needs
• Prepare case history
• Nominate chairperson and minute taker
• Identify service providers
• Inter-agency protocols / guidelines
• nature of advocacy and support
• Intervention and reason for referral
• Negotiate client agreement
• Representation on the client’s behalf
• Confidentiality
• Organisation policy and procedure
• Evaluate client progress
• Case closure
• Achievement of case plan goals
• Reasons for case closure
• Advise parties of case closure
• Implement case closure