Supporting quality engagement with children

About the project

The Supporting Quality Engagement with Children consultation project aimed to include the voices of children and young people in policies and services that directly affect them.

It added to the evidence base about how to connect with children and young people.

We consulted with children and young people about 5 key national strategies:

1. Safe and Supported: The National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2021-2031
2. National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032
3. Australia’s Disability Strategy 2021-2031
4. National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse 2021-2030
5. National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Early Childhood Strategy

This project was funded by the Department of Social Services.

The Commission reports consultation findings each year of the project. The third and final consultation report will be published in 2026.

2025 Report 'We're talking about stopping violence before it begins'

The third and final consultation report focused on the National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children 2022-2032, in particular prevention and early intervention.

Our report, ‘We’re talking about stopping violence before it begins’ shares the views of over 300 children and young people across all Australian jurisdictions, including metropolitan, regional and remote locations.

Consultations explored how children define and discover safe and positive relationships, where and how children get information and support around safety in relationships, and what else they need.

Children and young people from diverse backgrounds took part, including:

• First Peoples children
• children living with disability
• children in the LGBTQIA+ community
• children belonging to culturally and linguistically diverse and/or racially marginalised communities

The report contains 8 recommendations aimed at embedding children’s voices into prevention systems and strengthening Australia’s response to gender‑based violence.

Key findings include:

• Children have a clear vision of safe and positive relationships: supportive, comfortable, protective, fostered by trust, communication and respect.
• Understanding safety in relationships is often influenced by what young people have experienced and can vary depending on many factors, including age, gender, or culture. Systemic issues like poverty, racism, housing insecurity and intergenerational trauma can also influence how relationships are experienced.
• Children spoke of the critical role families and friends, schools, communities, media and online environments each play in early intervention and prevention.
• Young people highly value opportunities to have their voices heard in shaping policies and programs to ‘end the cycle’.

2024 Report 'A ground to grow from'

The second year of consultations focused on informing the Australian Government’s review of the National Standards for out-of-home care, part of the Safe and Supported: First Action Plan 2023-2026.

Our report, 'A ground to grow from', details the findings from consultations with over 500 children and young people across all Australian jurisdictions, including metropolitan, regional and remote locations.

The report explores what children and young people need to develop their identity and a positive sense of self. We hope the views of the children we were privileged to hear from will help to improve the lives of all children, especially children who are growing up in out-of-home care.

Children and young people from diverse backgrounds took part, including:

• First Nations children and young people
• children and young people living with disability
• culturally and linguistically diverse children and young people
• those with lived experiences of out-of-home care

The report contains 8 recommendations that would centre the experiences and views of children in the development of policies related to out-of-home care as well as other policies affecting children and young people.

Key findings include:

• Children and young people need a meaningful sense of belonging and identity so they can feel safe and thrive in out-of-home care environments.
• Having a positive sense of self, as well as strong personal and cultural connections, are vital for young people to have a quality experience of out-of-home care as well as improve the benefits of health, education and social services.
• Young people highly value opportunities to have their voices heard and help shape their experience of out-of-home care.

2023 Report 'Do things with the information we tell you’

Our first report, 'Do things with the information we tell you’ covers the first year of consultations with children and young people.

They told us they want to see action based on their ideas.

We asked children and young people from diverse backgrounds about 2 measures from the National Plan to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse 2021-2030:

• to deliver a website and helpline to assist victims and survivors
• to set up a national support service for non-offending family members of child sexual abuse perpetrators.

They told us they wanted to:

• make genuine connections with service providers and their peers
• hear from other young people with lived experience
• access services and supports in ways that suited them
• feel safe, happy and heard
• have influence, challenging the Government to action with their overarching message: ‘Do things with the information we tell you.’

It's not enough to just listen to children, we need to take seriously what they tell us about the systems that are failing to meet their needs.

There needs to be accountability for action, and child safety and well-being must be a national priority.