Is It Possible To Be Simultaneously Outraged And Inspired…….

A familiar feeling of overwhelm crept in this morning when I read about three year delays in the introduction of a national database to share information about convicted child sexual abuse offenders working with children. This delayed recommendation came from the Queensland Family and Child Commission's Review into System Responses to Child Sexual Abuse — handed down last year. And it's not the first time. Nearly a decade ago, The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse made an almost identical recommendation about the importance of real time information sharing to assist with the recruitment and screening of people who may intend to gain access to children by working in child related services. Almost every state has had some form of inquiry recommending similar changes.

I found myself practising some all too familiar self-talk — the kind you need to do to maintain a career in child protection and safeguarding. A necessity with the 24 hour news cycle. A necessity when paying close attention to the courageous truths being spoken to power about the extent and breadth of child sexual abuse in society.

So I looked for the positive. I thought about the Queensland Child Safe Standards and the collective effort going into them. I thought about the work my colleagues and I have been doing with Early Education Providers. I thought of my LinkedIn feed filled with hundreds of posts about safeguarding children and professionals committing their careers to protecting society's most vulnerable.

Then my mind went to the eager faces in training rooms and the thoughtful questions asked by early childhood educators. Staff sharing their heartbreak about what has happened in centres where children have been abused in plain sight. Leaders who invite us back and ask — what can we do next year to strengthen our team's knowledge and confidence to identify, recognise and speak about child sexual abuse. I thought about the training calendar I am building for one such agency — a calendar that will mean hundreds of people are trained across this state to recognise the signs of grooming and to speak up when something doesn't feel right.

It is possible to be simultaneously outraged and inspired. I know this because I feel both, every single day.