Who is the ‘head of an organisation’?
The head of an organisation is the person who is primarily responsible for an organisation’s compliance with the Reportable Conduct Scheme. Depending on the particular structure or type of organisation, the head of the organisation may be:
- the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), principal officer or equivalent
- the Secretary of a Victorian Government department.
Determining who is the principal officer depends on each organisation’s structure, governance arrangements and legal obligations. Some organisations may wish to obtain legal advice to identify their principal officer to ensure they fulfil their obligations under the scheme.
If the organisation does not have a CEO, principal officer or equivalent, they can nominate one. This can be done through the Head of organisation nomination form available on our website.
While heads of organisations are responsible for ensuring their organisations comply with the Scheme, the Social Services Regulator (SSR) does not expect heads to carry out their responsibilities alone. Heads of organisations can get help from other people within their organisation to fulfil their obligations under the Scheme. This may include creating and developing systems, sending approved notifications to the SSR, and conducting investigations on their behalf.
While heads of organisations can seek internal support and assistance from within their organisations, it is ultimately their responsibility to ensure the SSR is notified of any reportable allegations they become aware of.
What does the head of an organisation need to have in place?
Section 16K of the Children Wellbeing and Safety Act 2005 requires the head of an organisation to:
| Take a preventative approach to keeping children safe | This includes acknowledging children are vulnerable to abuse and taking steps to reduce this risk in their organisation. An organisation’s response to meeting their obligations under Child Safe Standards will help the organisation take a preventative approach to child safety. |
| Have systems in place to enable anyone to notify their concern or allegation that conduct in line with reportable conduct may have occurred | This includes having clear and well communicated systems to facilitate and support the reporting of concerns. Your organisation’s work to meet Child Safe Standard 7 will mean you will have internal reporting processes in place to notify allegations. |
| Have systems in place to allow other people to report to the SSR if the reportable allegation concerns the head of the organisation | As there may be instances in which the actions of concern are alleged to have been taken by the head of your organisation, organisations must have policies and systems that enable other people in your organisation to notify the SSR of alleged reportable conduct. |
| Have investigation processes clearly defined and developed | Once an allegation has been made, organisations must have processes in place to investigate the matter. In meeting Child Safe Standard 7, your organisation should have developed systems and processes to respond to allegations and report the matter internally, to Victoria Police and other relevant authorities as required. |
What the head of an organisation must report to the SSR
Section 16M requires the head of an organisation to initially notify the SSR of a reportable allegation within three business days and update the SSR of progress within 30 calendar days. They must also investigate the reportable allegation and provide the findings of the investigation to the SSR. The SSR will seek the following information at various milestones.
It is an offence to fail to notify the Social Services Regulator about reportable allegations.
| Three business day notification |
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| 30 calendar day update |
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| Advice on investigation |
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| Outcomes of investigation |
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| Additional documents |
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The SSR will also publish Investigation Standards to help guide the approach of organisations. An organisation’s regulator or government funder may also have investigation requirements and supports.
The head of the organisation must provide information to the SSR about any of these systems described above, if the SSR requests this in writing.
The SSR may make recommendations to the organisation to improve their practices and processes.
Contact us
For further information about the Reportable Conduct Scheme, to talk through issues of concern, or to make a notification, contact SSR by phone on 1300 310 778 or via email at contact@ssr.vic.gov.au.
For all WWC Check queries contact 1300 652 879.
If you need an interpreter, please call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 13 14 50 and ask them to contact the Social Services Regulator on 1300 310 778.
If you are deaf, or have a hearing or speech impairment, contact us through the National Relay Service. For more information, visit: https://www.accesshub.gov.au/about-the-nrs.
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