Reminders about the SSRC Register
Thank you to everyone who responded to our recent survey on the SSRC Register. It’s great to hear that so many providers are confident that they can use the register to log all nights of care for children and young people, and that providers are using it to calculate the number of days children receive care.
Remember, when logging all nights of SSRC you provide it is important to record all SSRC placements, including those that are only one or 2 nights, so that the SSRC Register can more accurately calculate the amount of care each child or young person receives.
Additionally, to ensure the security of the SSRC Register, the platform resets passwords every 6 weeks. For more information on how to use the SSRC Register, the SSRC Register user manual and a quick guide to updating the SSRC Register are available online to help. If you have specific questions, we are always happy to help where we can.
Upcoming SSRC Implementation Handbook
We have nearly finished our new SSRC Implementation Handbook.
The handbook will provide practical implementation guidance on key legislative requirements that SSRC providers must comply with. We envisage that it will be used by providers not as a higher-level policy document, but as a guide that can be consulted according to the questions a provider has, or to help with continuous improvement activities. For example, a provider who wants to improve their intake and assessment processes can go straight to the section of the handbook dealing with intake and assessment.
We are seeking feedback on the new handbook. If you would be willing to review a draft copy and providing feedback, please let us know.
Once we have incorporated your feedback, we will be publishing the Handbook on our website and will send out an announcement of its release.
Upcoming webinars and training
SSRC overview for new co-ordinators and providers
Monday 19 June 2023, 2-4pm AEDT
This introductory session provides an overview of Specialised Substitute Residential Care (SSRC) for providers and their staff. While it’s designed for those who are completely new to SSRC, it’s a great refresher for any provider and covers the key requirements, including:
- What SSRC is and what is not included
- Organisational obligations, including the 10 Child Safe Standards and SSRC Code of Practice
- Day to day obligations, including the SSRC Register
- The OCG’s monitoring framework
Register now to attend the webinar. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
SSRC – Developing a Child Safe risk management plan
Wednesday 19 July 2023, 2-4pm AEDT
Effective risk management helps leaders of child-related organisations improve their child-safe practices.
The 10 Child Safe Standards and SSRC Code of Practice require providers to identify and mitigate risks to children. This means that risk management planning for children in overnight placements is not only a good idea, but an essential requirement.
This webinar will help you develop your risk management strategies using two risk resources developed by the OCG in a session tailored for SSRC providers.
Register now to attend the webinar. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Child Safe Scheme training
In addition to the above SSRC specific webinars, the OCG provides regular training sessions on a range of topics relevant to all organisations that fall under the Child Safe Scheme, including SSRC providers.
The full list of upcoming events is hosted on the OCG website, but some sessions that may be of interest are;
- Introduction to the Child Safe Standards (13 June, 6-8pm). An overview of each of the 10 Child Safe Standards with some tips on ways to embed and practice.
- Developing a Code of Conduct (15 June, 2-3:30 pm). An in-depth look at how to develop or revise a child safe code of conduct
- Introduction to the Child Safe Standards (16 June, 12-2pm). An overview of each of the 10 Child Safe Standards with some tips on ways to embed and practice.
Check-ins with new providers
We’re continuing to see new providers registering every week, and the SSRC team is excited that there are so many agencies across NSW excited to provide overnight respite care for children and young people in our state.
With all these new providers, the SSRC team is planning to start doing check-ins with new providers, provide them with an opportunity to ask questions about SSRC and to see how best the OCG can target our capability building resources and processes within the sector.
We’ll be reaching out to agencies in the near future, but if you’re interested in having a chat, please feel free to send us an email and let us know you’re interested in a check-in.
Good practice from providers
From the SSRC team’s conversations with providers over the last few months, we’ve bene hearing and seeing some great practices for keeping children and young people safe in overnight respite care.
From this newsletter, we’re going to be including a regular segment to share examples of good practice from SSRC providers with everyone. If you’re proud of the work that your organisation has been doing in SSRC and you would like to share that with the sector, we’d love to hear from you. For example, you might have great ways of getting children and young people involved in decision-making processes, or in helping children develop protective behaviours. Send the SSRC team an email and we can work together to share our experiences and improve as a sector.
Our thanks go to Michelle Parrish from Wesley Aunties & Uncles program for sharing with us how the Wesley Aunties & Uncles program prioritises the needs of children and works to mitigate risks of harm to children.
How do you prioritise the needs of children with families request for overnight respite?
If a parent or carer in the Wesley Aunties & Uncles program ask if their child can stay overnight with the mentor family we go through a rigorous child-centred approval procedure. The Case Manager must complete a ‘request for an overnight stay’ form which includes extensive questions, such as has the child been consulted, what are their views, and is the child ready for an overnight stay? The request must be initially supported and approved by the Case Manager, the Team Leader and the Program Manager. The child’s mentor is consulted too.
Once the workers, parent and mentor all support the request we consult the child. This is the most important approval. If all the adults want the overnight stay to go ahead but the child doesn’t, the child’s view takes precedence. An overnight stay is not even contemplated until a child has known their mentors for at least 6 months, have a good attachment and are comfortable with them. An overnight stay should only be considered if it deemed in the best interest of the child and their family.
This child-centred approach to decision making keeps the views and wishes of children front and centre in our decision making. It also lets the child know that what they want and have to say is important. We empower the children to use their voice before an overnight is approved, allowing them to ask questions and make the final decision. In all our practise our first thought is: what does the child want and what does the child think. If we don’t know, we find out. The child is the most important stakeholder in this process, and we work tirelessly to make sure their mentoring experience is a positive one.
Why is Organisational Risk Assessment important to your organisation?
A Wesley Aunties & Uncles Program Level Risk Assessment is vital. It ensures all staff understand the risks, contribute to identifying them and that we have a whole-of-team approach to risk assessment and management. Risk assessment and mitigation is at the absolute core of preventing harm to children. It is the foundation of best practice. Some people are naturally better at identifying risk and hazards than others and a team approach ensures that all staff are able to share knowledge, learn and continuously improve. Risk assessment is a standing item on our monthly team meeting agenda. It becomes a living document under constant and scheduled review and can be updated if a new risk emerges.
What do you think is the best part of your program?
The best part of the Wesley Aunties & Uncles Program is that it is totally child-focused and child-centred. This is what we are most proud of as a team. Many years of work, training and continuous improvement have gone into developing rigorous policy and procedures to capture the voice of the children. They are consulted and heard at every step and their likes, dislikes, concerns, and suggestions are acted upon. Wesley Aunties and Uncles will be celebrating its 50th Anniversary next year and we have so many wonderful stories of long-term relationships that have been formed between the child, their family and our mentor Aunts and Uncles. It’s a simple concept which brings together incredibly giving people in our communities and children in need of support. Of course, the simplicity of the concept masks a complex effort behind the scenes to work within the legislation and above all, ensure the safety of the child.
I would like to finish with a quote from a ten-year-old girl who, when asked the question above, replied, “The best part of having an Aunt and Uncle is they care for me, they take me to fun places and they are kind.” It’s feedback like this that motivates the team at Wesley Aunties & Uncles to do the best for children every day.
Contact us
If you have any further questions or suggestions for additional resources and training, you can reach out to us via email at ssrc@ocg.nsw.gov.au or by phone on (02) 8219 3798. We aim to respond to all requests within 3 business days.
