About us

Rationale 

Marist Alternative Education places the well-being of young people as its paramount concern and is committed to acting in their best interests at all times. The Centre is also required to ensure the well-being of students, so they thrive, belong and achieve, in accordance with the following legislation: 

• Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 (Children’s and Young People’s Well-being Act 1989) 
• Human Rights Act 1993 
• UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989 (ratified in NZ 1993) 
• Children’s Act 2014, and the 
• Privacy Act 1993 

This policy covers all children and young people who interact with the Marist Alternative Education staff. 

Purpose 

To support the implementation of systems, processes and learning to foster a safe and secure environment and to enable staff to act promptly, responsibly and in the best interests of the student when any person at the Centre believes that any child or youth has been, or is likely to be, harmed, ill-treated, abused, neglected, or deprived. 

 Guidelines

a) Student safety and wellbeing is always the paramount consideration. Child and youth protection is everyone’s responsibility, and their safeguarding requires the constant co-operation of the entire MAEL community. 

b) Procedures are in place to meet child and youth protection requirements. 

c) MAEL contract and funding arrangements take child and youth protection into account. 

d) The rights of family and whanau to participate in the decision-making about their children are recognised. 

e) It is the responsibility of all staff to be vigilant, have the knowledge and are able to identify the signs and symptoms of potential or actual abuse and neglect, vulnerability factors, and deal with disclosures by children and allegations against staff members and are able to take appropriate action immediately in response to ensure that the concerns are taken seriously and reported. 

f) Staff will work with partner agencies and organisations to ensure child protection policies are understood and implemented. The Centre will ensure that child and youth protection training is available to all staff. 

g) The Centre will protect staff against the potential of false accusations through the Education Council’s Code of Professional Responsibility and Standards for the Teaching Profession, role modelling good practice, robust recruitment policies and proactively encouraging a team approach to all activities. 

h) School recruitment policies and practices are in accordance with the Children’s Act 2014, and staff inductions include child and youth protection.

i) Advice is sought from agencies and advisors especially in regard to employment matters 

j) Relevant information is shared and discussed in a timely manner with the Board or designated person, in accordance with the Centre’s commitment to confidentiality and information sharing. 

Definitions 

For the purposes of this policy 

• Child/ young person / youth is any person under the age of 18 years 

• Staff are those who are employed at any of the Marist Alternative Education sites. This includes teaching staff who may only be teaching at Marist Alternative Education Ltd on a temporary basis (relievers), as well as permanent teaching staff. 
• Child abuse is harming (whether physically, emotionally, sexually), ill-treatment, neglect, or deprivation of any child or young person [as defined by Oranga Tamariki Act, 1989] 

Further definitions of abuse/ neglect are provided in the procedures document.