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Keeping Safe: Child Protection Curriculum information for parents and carers

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The Keeping Safe: Child Protection Curriculum (KS:CPC) is a respectful relationships and child safety curriculum for children and young people from age 3 to year 12. It teaches children to:

  • recognise abuse and tell a trusted adult about it
  • understand what is appropriate and inappropriate touching
  • understand ways of keeping themselves safe.

The KS:CPC is mandated in all public preschools and schools and is taught every year by teachers who have completed a full day KS:CPC training course. It is a world-class, evidence-based child safety program that is used by a range of other Australian and international schools.

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Respectful relationships and consent education

Respectful relationships and consent education are addressed through the Australian Curriculum and the KS:CPC.

The consent and sexual consent page has information to help parents, families and carers talk with their child about:

  • consent
  • sexual health
  • respectful relationships.

Australian Curriculum

Respectful relationships and consent are primarily addressed through the Health and Physical Education learning area and within the ‘relationships and sexuality’ and ‘safety’ focus areas. Consent is also addressed within digital technology and in particular social media.

KS:CPC

Learning about respectful relationships is at the foundation of the KS:CPC for children and young people from early to secondary years. Concepts focussing on consent are embedded throughout the curriculum at an age and developmentally appropriate level.

Topics around consent and online safety were strengthened in a revised edition of the KS:CPC, released in August 2021.

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Why we teach children about keeping safe

The department has a legal responsibility to protect children and young people from abuse in its own settings and in the wider community. All children and young people have a right to:

  • be treated with respect and to be protected from harm
  • be asked  for their opinions about things that affect their lives and to be listened to
  • feel and be safe in their interactions with adults and other children and young people
  • understand as early as possible what is meant by 'feeling and being safe'.
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Curriculum

Themes

The curriculum follows 2 main themes:

  • we all have the right to be safe
  • we can help ourselves to be safe by talking to people we trust.

Focus areas

The 2 themes are explored through 4 focus areas:

  • the right to be safe
  • relationships
  • recognising and reporting abuse
  • protective strategies.

The focus areas are targeted to the age of the learners.

Concept summaries

These summaries tell you more about what is taught in each age group:

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More information

Fact sheets

Information in multiple languages 

Talk to your preschool or school

Parent or carer permission is not required under the South Australian Children and Young People (Safety) Act, 2017. But we do want you to contact your child’s preschool or school if you want more information about the Keeping Safe: Child Protection Curriculum activities.

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Child Protection Curriculum Team

Phone: 8463 5910
Email: Education.CPC [at] sa.gov.au

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