Safer Communities for Children:
A community approach to protective behaviours
Safer Communities for Children is an inclusive, culturally safe, whole-of-community protective behaviours approach, specifically designed for young children aged around 4 to 8 years. The program can be delivered by local community members and services across a range of settings such as schools, family centres and early childhood environments in urban, rural and remote settings.
The program is based on 7 bush animal stories with specific messages about safety that also reinforce community responsibility to value and protect children.
A unique aspect of the approach is that it elicits the voices of children on what makes them feel safe, and encourages adults to respond in ways that are meaningful and relevant for their children and community.
Safer Communities for Children offers a new approach to protective behaviours in that it:
- is a primary prevention approach that seeks to prevent all types of abuse and neglect
- is focused on children’s wellbeing and their rights
- gives children a voice
- focuses on raising community awareness of every adult’s role in protecting and supporting children, and
- provides practical strategies for parents, services and communities to hear from children about what makes them feel safe, and to create physically and emotionally safe and friendly environments that promote children’s safety and wellbeing.