Four Critical Actions to respond to child abuse in the family

This may include seeing a concerning interaction or harmful incident, or inappropriate or boundary crossing behaviour.

Grooming can be difficult to identify. It can look like ‘normal’ caring behaviour, such as providing special attention and emotional support to a child.

Some examples of grooming behaviours include:

• Regularly trying to spend one-on-one time with a specific child
• Developing an unusually close connection with a child
• Showing too much or unnecessary physical affection towards a child (such as encouraging hugging, tickling, or cuddling when it isn’t needed)

A disclosure is when someone shares information that suggests a child may be unsafe or has been abused. This can come from the child, or from someone who knows them.

Disclosures may be:

• verbal or non-verbal
• intentional or accidental
• complete or partial
• disclosed in stages over time.

Disclosures are not always clear and may change over time.

Any disclosures or concerns should be taken seriously. For more information on how best to respond to disclosures, see strategies for managing a disclosure.

These could include:

• injuries or signs of abuse that don’t have a clear explanation or don’t match the story given
• sudden changes in behaviour (like becoming withdrawn, aggressive, or overly obedient)
• becoming scared or avoiding certain adults.

Often, changes in a child’s body or behaviour are the only signs that they are experiencing abuse. Detailed information on more physical and behavioural signs of abuse can be found here.

You may notice behaviours which may show that children are experiencing family violence, or another type of abuse or harm. For babies under 18 months, signs of trauma include:

• excessive (a lot of) crying
• passivity (being very quiet)
• reactions to loud voices or noises
• being very wary of new people.

For toddlers, the signs also include:

• being overly compliant (doing everything they are told without question)
• delayed movement
• blood in nappy or underwear.

A full list of observable signs of trauma can be found here.

Family violence risk factors are evidence-based factors that increase the likelihood and/or escalation of family violence.

It is important that you can recognise family violence risk factors.

MARAM (The Multi-Agency Risk Assessment and Management Framework) family violence tools are available to help you identify and record family violence – see Family violence risk factors for more information.

You may suspect an adult is using family violence due to the person’s explanation or description of experiences, themselves and their relationships (their narrative) or behaviours towards family members or professionals – these may be signs they are using family violence.

See narratives and behaviours for more information.

This may include distressing, sexualised or threatening content. This could also include concerning messages, images, or interactions, including sign of grooming, exploitation, or harmful contact.

Online spaces are a common way abuse can begin or continue.

If you have a concern that a child is experiencing, or is at risk of experiencing, family violence, any staff member can record relevant information in the Family Violence Identification Tool. This tool can be used to identify abuse for any concern where the abuse is within the family.

You are not expected to ask the child, or a member of their family, any questions to complete this tool.

Once you have completed it, give the tool to your service’s MARAM nominated staff member.

MARAM nominated staff can organise a conversation with the child (or an adult victim survivor) if safe, reasonable, and appropriate to do so.

Your primary responsibility is always to ensure the safety of the child. Do not engage with the child and their family if:

• It is unsafe. For example, if:
  • It is likely to jeopardise a child’s wellbeing or safety or place another person at risk of harm
  • It is an emergency, or the child or another adult is at immediate risk
  • You suspect the person you need to talk to (e.g. the parent or carer or another adult) is using family violence.
• It is unreasonable. For example, if you are unable to contact or get in touch with them.
• It is inappropriate.

When completing this tool, MARAM nominated staff can also talk to other early childhood staff who may have relevant information. The Family Violence Screening Tool will inform the MARAM nominated staff of the next steps.

MARAM nominated staff can also use the Family Violence Basic Safety Plan tool to plan for the child’s safety at the service and have a once-off conversation (if appropriate and if possible to do so, considering the child’s age and developmental stage) about safety at home.

However, it may be more appropriate to do this at a later time – see Support.

For more information on how to complete the Family Violence tools, refer to Information Sharing and Family Violence Reforms: Guidance and Tools.

Use this pathway if you form a reasonable belief that the parents/carers have not, or are unlikely to, protect the child from significant harm. You must report physical and sexual abuse.

Go to Report

Use this pathway if you believe a crime has been committed against a child, but it is not a mandatory report.

Go to Report

Use this pathway if you believe there is family violence, but it is not a mandatory report or a crime.

Go to Support

Use this pathway if you believe there is a significant wellbeing concern because the family is struggling with the care, wellbeing or development of a child, but it is not a mandatory report, crime, or family violence.

Go to Support

Contact The Orange Door for advice if you are not sure about which pathway to take.

In most cases, this will involve referring the child (and possibly their family) to community organisations and specialist support services. The following sections, Refer, outlines these options in more detail.

Services should try to stay in touch with the child’s parent/carer (if it is safe, reasonable, and appropriate) to plan support and talk about how the child is going and whether the support is helping.

Educators (with support from service leadership) should determine the most appropriate strategies to use to support the child or children involved. This may be through discussion, reading books about body safety and role playing with puppets and/or dolls.

For some younger children, this could involve age-appropriate conversations about safety and wellbeing to understand what helps them feel safe and happy at their service, at home, and in their community.

• First Nations children
• Children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds
• Children with disability
• Children in out-of-home care
• LGBTIQA+ or gender-diverse children and their families.

Child Link is a digital tool that shows limited but important information about a child to authorised professionals who are responsible for child wellbeing and safety.

Child Link supports CISS to improve wellbeing and safety outcomes for children. Child Link and CISS can help you to make decisions about the wellbeing, safety and support needs of a child in your service. This makes it easier to identify risks early and provide the right support.

Ask your manager which staff at your service have access to Child Link. They can check information regarding the child’s participation in key early childhood and education services; key family relationships; and if the child or their sibling has a past or current child protection order.

Maternal and Child Health Service (MCH), is a free, local primary health service for families with children from birth to school age. MCH works in partnership with families to support health and wellbeing.

MCH can also help families to connect with other local community services.

Families can also call the MCH Line 24/7 for advice and support: 13 22 29.

The Orange Door is a hub where you can refer families for family violence or child wellbeing services and supports.

You should make a referral to The Orange Door if:

• you have serious concerns about a child’s wellbeing
• the child’s immediate safety is not at risk; and
• you or your service have discussed the referral with the family.

Sometimes it may help to refer a child or their family to a local specialist support service, especially if they already know and trust the service.

In Victoria, there are many services that support young children.

These include services that help children recover from trauma, support families, and provide early help for children who may be at risk of abuse, neglect, or family violence.

There are specialist services that can also assist with:

• safety and wellbeing concerns
• mental and physical health concerns
• housing and accommodation
• legal advice
• financial help
• problem behaviours.

If that support service is an Information Sharing Entity (ISE), they can share information with The Orange Door under the Child Information Sharing Scheme (CISS) and the Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme (FVISS), as required.

A list of specialist support services for children is available in the PROTECT web guidance on the Services, helplines and websites page.

This page shows some services, but it does not list all of them. There are many other specialist services across Victoria that can support children and their families.

Decisions about the needs of First Nations People should be made by First Nations People.

If someone identifies as First Nations, they can choose to be supported by a worker from an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation (ACCO). See a list of ACCOs.

They can also choose to be supported by The Orange Door – they work with Aboriginal Practice Leads to make cultural safety a priority.

The Orange Door has a dedicated team that supports First Nations People.

This team works closely with local First Nations services and communities to meet the needs of individuals and families.

The Orange Door also supports Aboriginal self-determination by respecting First Nations People’s choice of services for referrals.

Matters involving sexual offences are serious.

Report any concerns about sexual abuse before seeking advice or referring to a local sexual assault service.

For matters involving sexual offences, services can refer directly to local sexual assault services, instead of through The Orange Door.

You can contact local sexual assault services, including local Centres Against Sexual Assault (CASAs) and harmful sexual behaviour services for information and support.

Tell your service manager/leader, designated child safety staff member, nominated supervisor or approved provider as soon as a concern, disclosure, or allegation is identified.

They can support you through the rest of the critical actions.

If any of the above staff are the suspected perpetrators of abuse, do not contact them without explicit clearance from police.

Child Protection can:

• assess the situation and risk
• investigate
• interview key people
• intervene to protect the child
• support the family to keep the child safe.

• After hours: 13 12 78

You cannot make Child Protection reports via the DFFH website or email.

If you believe a crime by an adult against a child has been committed, you must make a report to Victoria Police.

Emergency situations that require urgent police attendance must be reported to police via 000.

Common crimes against children include physical and sexual assault or abuse, grooming, and threatening behaviour.

At any time, you can call Victoria Police on 131 444 (non-emergency situations only) or contact your local police station.

Share any completed family violence tools as part of your report.

Approved Providers – You must notify VECRA:

• Within 24 hours of a serious incident at an approved education or care service or a complaint alleging that a serious incident has occurred or is occurring while a child was or is being educated and cared for by an approved education and care service, or
• Within 24 hours of becoming aware of reportable sexual misconduct, including sexual misconduct or a sexual offence, committed against, with or in the presence of a child by a person employed or engaged to perform work or provide services at an education and care service or a volunteer, whether or not it occurred at an education and care service.*

* This requirement is in effect from 12 August 2026.

If your service manager or approved provider does not notify VECRA about the concern, you can also make a complaint to VECRA (including anonymously). You can fill in in the secure webform or contact your local VECRA office via email (vecra@education.vic.gov.au) or the enquiries line: 1300 307 415.

Before contacting parents/carers you need clearance from:

• Victoria Police in situations involving a police response
• Child Protection in situations where Child Protection has been notified

Once you have clearance, you must contact parents/carers as soon as possible (ideally on the same day). This is an important step. It helps parents or carers support their child in partnership with the service, authorities, and other support services.

Your primary responsibility is to ensure the safety of the child. Before engaging with parents and carers, consider whether it is safe to do so.

Do not contact the child or their family if it could be unsafe, put the child at risk, or put anyone else in danger. Do not contact them unless you have clear permission from Victoria Police or Child Protection.