Our Duty of Care

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If your communication with us raises safety concerns, we will try to contact you to check that you and/or others are safe. If necessary, we may need to pass on your contact information (if you have supplied it) to authorities who can help protect you and/or others, such as a crisis service or the police. Where possible we will work with you openly, letting you know if our concerns reach the point where we need to involve other services.

We are obliged to try to protect you and/or others if the information you submit tells us that:

• you are being seriously hurt by someone else

• you are thinking of seriously harming yourself

• someone else is being, is likely to be, seriously hurt by you or another person

Duty of Care (suicide and self-harm)

Where a client presents with suicidal ideation, FL staff have a duty of care to carry out a thorough risk assessment to:

• assess the client’s level of distress and the degree of risk they pose to themselves

• defuse the emotional distress and intervene appropriately to ensure safety

• refer to local services to provide ongoing support and advice

• link to emergency services when necessary.

Duty of care (domestic and family violence)

Where FL staff become aware that there is physical, emotional, sexual, psychological or economic abuse in family and intimate relationships, they have a duty of care to:

• connect the client with services in the community to facilitate behaviour change.

• take appropriate steps to ensure the safety of the person experiencing abuse and encourage them to seek suitable support.

Duty of care (Children)

If violence and or abuse of children is identified, FL staff have a duty of care to work with authorities Australia wide, guided by the principles of relevant State legislation, to ensure their ongoing safety.