Our Mission
Our role
Through research, professional education and advocacy, the Centre aims to enhance life opportunities for children in Australia who are at risk of abuse or neglect.
Our responsibility
To contribute to the work of others in the prevention of, and response to , child abuse and neglect through:
- undertaking and facilitating research concerned with child protection, and communicating understandings from research for policy and practice;
- initiatives designed to improve curriculum content and teaching practices within and across relevant professions and education disciplines;
- acting as a resource, and where appropriate a catalyst, in advocating change and improvement in Australia.
Our approach
Working collaboratively with stakeholders to …
- institute a program of research and research support which will:
- review and articulate findings from research concerned with child protection;
- undertake research projects in areas of demonstrable need and promise;
- engage or partner with others on contracted research initiatives where these are demonstrably contributing to the Centre’s mission;
- sponsor a cohort of doctoral students, and lend support to other research students wishing to undertake studies concerned with child protection;
- communicate findings and action agendas from research to a range of stakeholders and, where appropriate, to influence programs and policy in child protection.
- implement a professional education research and development strategy
which will:
- map trends and current approaches in the curricula of key professional areas across Australia;
- identify ideas, approaches and good practice which can be articulated and made available to other professional education programs;
- monitor, advocate and proactively support curriculum improvement initiatives on a national basis;
- generate discourse between academics, researchers and professional practitioners related to the roles of professionals and child protection priorities.
- develop partnerships and strategic alliances with government,
educational institutions and community organizations concerned with
child protection in order to:
- promote synergy and shared agendas;
- improve the basis for decision making and action;
- influence and shape programs and policy in child protection;
- leverage the impact of the Centre’s activities and resourcing
Our commitment
The Centre will improve the knowledge base and the communication of good
practice in the prevention of, and response to, child abuse and neglect. Its
activities are therefore formative in nature – the basis for continuing
improvement – rather than summative or judgmental.
The Centre is committed to effective advocacy in support of child
protection, and actively seeks new or improved forms of communication and
influence.
The Centre subscribes to the University of South Australia’s commitment to
initiatives which:
- achieve social benefit through action, build the capacity and resilience of communities and proactively address consequences of disadvantage;
- are innovative, collaborative and enterprising, which work across boundaries, and which foster alliances, locally and globally.