23 September 2025
In October 2024, the National Office of Child Safety (NOCS) within the Attorney-General's Department funded the Australian Centre for Child Protection (ACCP), in partnership with Professor Simon Hackett from Durham University and Lumenia, to develop the National Clinical and Therapeutic Framework (the Framework) for responding to children and young people who have displayed concerning or harmful sexual behaviours. The Framework is designed to support services across Australia who provide clinical and therapeutic responses at the secondary and tertiary levels to address harmful sexual behaviours.
A series of workshops were held in November – December 2024 to gather input on six core areas of the Framework:
- The Service System
- Principles of Practice
- Conducting Therapeutic Assessments
- Therapeutic Responses and Intervention
- Workforce Skills and Capability
- Culturally Responsive Practice
The insights gathered during these sessions informed the structure and content of the draft Framework. With this foundational phase now complete, the next stage will focus on reviewing and refining the Framework to ensure its practicality and effectiveness in everyday service delivery.
Link to Round 1 Consultation Summary here
A second round of online consultations to review the first draft of the Framework was completed in June-July 2025.
Link to Round 2 Consultation Summary coming soon
The third round of consultations to provide written feedback has now closed.
Thank you for your interest in the National Clinical Framework.
Other related information
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Consultation Summaries and Participant Review
For those providing written feedback, individual summaries will not be provided. However, all submissions will be reviewed and considered alongside input from the workshops and will be incorporated into the Framework where relevant.
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Your Privacy and Data Storage
Participation in this consultation is confidential (to the Project Team) and voluntary, and the information collected will not be used for any purpose other than informing the development of the Framework.
By participating in this consultation via written feedback, you consent to the project team collecting and using your input to inform the development of the Framework.
Written feedback will be submitted voluntarily and does not require the inclusion of any personal or identifying information. No identifiable details (e.g. name or address) will be included in reports, presentations, or publications.
You may withdraw from providing written feedback at any time, simply discontinue from the survey. If you wish to have your information and feedback removed, please contact Co-Chief Investigator Amanda.paton@unisa.edu.au to advise and any data you contributed will be excluded from analysis.
All data collected will be treated as confidential and managed in line with the University of South Australia’s data management and privacy policies. Data will be stored on password-protected computers and secure servers, accessible only to authorised project team members, and housed in locked offices at the Australian Centre for Child Protection (South Australia and Western Australia).
Data will be retained in accordance with university policy and securely destroyed after the required retention period.
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Who to Contact for Support
Participation in the consultations may cause distress due to the sensitive nature of the topic. If, at any time during the process, before, during, or after providing written feedback, you feel distressed or require support, we encourage you to:- Contact a member of the project team for assistance
- Access your organisation’s Employee Assistance Program, if available.
- Reach out to one of the following confidential support services:
- Beyond Blue – 1300 22 4636
- 13YARN– 13 92 76
- 1800RESPECT – 1800 737 732
- Blue Knot Foundation – 1300 657 380
- Lifeline – 13 11 14
- National Counselling and Referral Service – Disability - 1800 421 468
Your wellbeing is a priority, and we encourage you to seek support if needed.
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Further Information
If you have any queries or would like more information about the project, please contact the Chief Investigators, Amanda Paton amanda.paton@unisa.edu.au or Professor Simon Hackett simon.hackett@durham.ac.uk.
