Record types covered by the Disposal Freeze on Records about Children
The State Archivist issued a disposal freeze for records that relate to children. This freeze is to protect records that may become relevant for National Redress Scheme applicants, or for people taking legal action for abuse suffered when they were children. This freeze meets the recommendations from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, and the changes made to the Limitation Act 1974 (Tas).
Records which may become relevant will confirm a survivor and an alleged offender were in the same place at the same time. These records may have been originally created for another purpose. For example, leave forms are created for pay entitlements, but they can also show an employee’s whereabouts.
How do I find my organisation’s relevant records?
Carefully assess how your organisation interacts with children. Even if a core function is not directly related to children (for example, roads, utilities, agriculture) there will be scenarios where an organisation and its employees interact with children. Not many organisations have zero contact with children. Go to the How to Identify Records page for more information.
Relevant record types
A list of record types covered by the disposal freeze is provided below. Your organisation may not have all of these record types, and you might have record types that are not on this list.
Please email osa@libraries.tas.gov.au to let us know of other record types that you find so we can update this list.
Children’s services
These records will hold information about individual children. Each record will generally be about one child or incident, however, it could also be part of a broader record about a family or group of children. The children may be identifiable by name, photograph, unique identifier or other means.
Child protection and safety
Ongoing monitoring of family situations and visits
- Case files for individual children, including investigations into complaints, case reviews and external investigations
- Abuse counselling
- Domestic and family violence support
- Legal advice and referrals to the police or other investigative organisation
- Public enquiries or complaints about child protection services, abuse procedures, counselling etc
Education and training
- Includes individual students, apprentices, trainees, home schooling, athletes, etc.
- Includes tuition and extra-curricular activities
- Enrolment records
- Records of a child’s location, including attendance, absences, excursions and work experience placements
- Behavioural and disciplinary records
- Complaints and grievances
- Accidents, injuries, illnesses and treatment
- Reports relating to suspected abuse sustained at home
- Counselling
- Liaison with parents
- Student out-of-home accommodation
- School transport service
Health services
- Clinical/patient/medical files
- Clinical research
- Mental health services including psychiatric care
- Allied health services
- Guidance and counselling
- Medical transport
- Complaints and investigations about medical treatment
Out-of-home care
- Case files for individual children
- Records of institutions that arrange, provide or regulate out-of-home care
- Student out-of-home accommodation including boarding arrangements, homestays etc
- Children raised within the correction system (i.e. the parent has care of their child/children while in custody)
- Carer records, including successful and unsuccessful applicants
Short-term care
- Includes child care, vacation programs, respite etc
- Files for individual children in care
- Records of a child’s location, including admission, attendance, discharges and excursions.
- Accidents, injuries, illnesses and any treatment provided
- Complaints and grievances
- Liaison with parents
Youth justice
- Youth offender case files, including investigations, prosecution, sentencing etc
- Records of a youth offender’s location, including custodial arrangements, community service activities and transport
- Complaints and grievances
- Records of at-risk youths
- Restorative justice services to child victims of crime
- Surveillance footage
Strategy, programs and employment
These records document how the organisation manages strategy, regulation, programs and services that affect or are offered to children. It includes personnel records for paid employees, volunteers, contractors and visitors who interact with children. These records could be used to provide evidence of an interaction between an employee and a child. They could also show how the organisation managed the risk of child abuse.
Legal services
- Advocacy and legal advice
- Issues, claims and case matters
- Criminal or civil claims
- Cases where a child has separate legal representation, including family law and child protection
Programs and services
- Programs or services, including vacation care, youth theatre or arts, libraries, youth clubs, cultural institutions, tourism venues, road safety education and volunteer and work experience programs
- School visits and organised tours
- Attendance and/or registration
- Youth justice programs, including preventative, custodial and rehabilitation services
- Investigation of complaints relating to a child’s participation and/or visit
Licensing and regulation
- Licensing and regulation of service providers, including education, youth justice, child care etc.
- Agreements, contracts, joint venture agreements, memoranda of understanding and outsourcing arrangements
Personnel records
- Employees include paid employees, volunteers, contractors and visitors
- Employee history records
- Records of an employee’s location, including attendance, leave, travel and sign-in books
- Complaints and investigations regarding conduct
- Counselling, mediation and disciplinary records
- Training in child safety policies, procedures and standards
Employment registration and screening
- Registration of professionals likely to be working with children
- Complaint investigations, decisions and appeals
- Working with vulnerable people registrations or similar, including applications, positive and negative notices, persons of interest register etc
- Employment screening assessments