Table 2.

Audit tool used for the Royal Commission's audit of school policy and curriculum: Criteria and guiding questions.

Criteria	Guiding questions
1. Base child/student protection policy	•Does a child protection policy exist? Identify the policy by name and provide the URL, document identification details, date of publication, date policy was last updated and total number of pages in the policy. •Is there a navigable pathway to the policy from the school system home page? Record the pathway from the home page to the policy, and the number of steps involved. •Does the home page search feature locate the policy using the terms 'child protection', 'student protection' or 'child abuse' within the first five to 10 hits? •Can the policy be downloaded as a single document? •Does the policy need to be read in conjunction with other documents? If so, identify these documents by title and record the number of pages in each document. •What specific guidance is provided for situations of sexual abuse by individuals employed by or volunteering at the institution? Identify section numbers and page numbers to pinpoint where this information is provided. Record broad categories of information provided. •Is the teaching of child sexual abuse prevention education specified in the policy? Insert representative quotes and source (including section number and page number). •What related documents are listed? Record the total number of documents listed and record the titles of the documents most relevant to child protection.
2. Specific policy on child sexual abuse prevention education	•Is there a specific policy on child sexual abuse prevention education? Identify the policy by name and provide the URL, document identification details, date of publication, date the policy was last updated and total number of pages in the policy. •Does the policy specify evidence-based approaches? List any research cited in the policy. Does the policy specify updating in response to new research? •Does the policy address the potential for child sexual abuse to occur in child-related institutions (such as schools) by individuals employed by or otherwise engaged by the institutions, and by other children within the institutions? If so, describe. •Is child sexual abuse prevention education optional or compulsory? Describe the approach. •If compulsory, how do schools report on compliance? Describe the reporting mechanisms.
3. Location in the curriculum	•Where is child sexual abuse prevention education located in the primary school curriculum (that is, which parts of the school curriculum relate to child sexual abuse prevention education)? Indicate if this is explicit or implicit. Nominate learning areas/subjects, strands and learning outcomes. Refer to (i) school curriculum, (ii) specific child sexual abuse prevention education curricula, (iii) other child sexual abuse prevention program curricula (internal), and (iv) other child sexual abuse prevention education curricula (external). •Is child sexual abuse prevention education named in the primary school curriculum? •What recommendations are made for specific programs or for the timing, frequency or intensity of sexual abuse prevention education? •What recommendations are made for personnel in the teaching of child sexual abuse prevention education (for example, who will teach it and why; what expertise or qualifications are required)?
4. Inclusion, relevance, and cultural sensitivity	•What strategies are recommended for schools and teachers in differentiating the teaching of child sexual abuse prevention education for different groups of children (that is, for children of different ages and genders, children of culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds including refugee and asylum-seeking backgrounds, Australian Indigenous children, children with disabilities, children in out-of-home care, and same-sex attracted and gender-questioning children)? •Are curricula and/or programs presented in languages other than English? If so, indicate which language(s).
5. Curriculum support	•What curriculum support is provided to schools and/or teachers in the teaching of child sexual abuse prevention education? •Which specific programs or materials are suggested for use? •What agencies are involved in providing child sexual abuse prevention curriculum support to teachers? Are contractual or other arrangements in place? •Do materials and resources acknowledge the potential for institutional child sexual abuse to occur and provide support for teaching about this?
6. Pedagogical support	•Is training specified in the child protection policy? •What training is provided to school staff in the teaching of child sexual abuse prevention education? Describe training provisions, formats, duration and frequency. •Which specific internal/external training agencies are involved and how? •Which specific training programs or materials are used and why? •Are contractual or other arrangements in place between school systems and other agencies (for example, preferred providers) for the delivery of staff training? If so, describe.
7. Assessment & evaluation	•Is student learning about child sexual abuse prevention assessed? If so, how? •Has the child sexual abuse prevention education/curriculum been evaluated? If so, who conducted the evaluation? When? How (what approach was used)? What data were collected and from whom? •Were evaluation findings implemented?
8. Information for parents and communities	•Is there a parent navigation tab visible on the website home page? •Is information provided to parents about institutional responses to child sexual abuse, including processes for reporting known or suspected institutional child sexual abuse? •Is information publicly available to parents/communities about child sexual abuse prevention education delivered at school? •What information is directed towards parents specifically about their involvement in child sexual abuse prevention education? •Is parental permission required for children's participation in child sexual abuse prevention education at school?
9. Information for children and young people	•Is there a student navigation tab visible on the website home page? •What information is provided to children and young people about institutional responses to child sexual abuse, including processes for reporting known or suspected institutional child sexual abuse? •What information is provided to children and young people about child sexual abuse prevention education delivered at school?
10. Partnerships with community services and agencies	•What reference is made in policy and procedures documents (for child protection, child sexual abuse prevention and/or mandatory reporting) to partnerships with support-based external agencies or community services for referrals arising from the teaching of child sexual abuse prevention in schools? •What reference is made on departmental or diocesan websites to partnerships with support-based external agencies or community services for referrals arising from the teaching of child sexual abuse prevention in schools? •What reference is made by departments or dioceses, in submissions to the Royal Commission, to partnerships with support-based external agencies or community services for referrals arising from the teaching of child sexual abuse prevention in schools? •What agencies are nominated to receive referrals in relation to child sexual abuse? •Are the agencies predominantly government or non-government agencies? •Are the agencies nominated of direct relevance to child sexual abuse, prevention education, disclosures, or counselling support?