Australian Catholic Safeguarding Ltd (ACSL) was recently engaged to undertake a safeguarding audit in relation to the Congregation’s compliance with the National Catholic Safeguarding Standards (NCSS). The purpose of the NCSS is to build a culture of shared responsibility for safeguarding and to ensure that policies, practices, and codes of behaviour work together to prevent, detect, and respond appropriately to potential or actual incidents of child abuse.

The auditors interviewed a number of staff and Sisters from all Regions within Australia either in person, or via online technology. The auditors also worked for many hours examining the documentation the safeguarding team had uploaded to the NCSS Portal.

The Congregation achieved an outstanding perfect mark of one hundred percent (100%) compliance with all assessed safeguarding NCSS indicators. The auditors have commented that: “Safeguarding culture appears embedded in daily practices.” Some of the Congregations professional safeguarding documentation will be included on ACSL’s website as items of evidence and examples of best practice to support other religious entities.

The audit report is publicly available on ACSL’s website, and you can access the report by clicking below:

Publications and Reports – Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart