STRENGTHEN YOUR CHILD PROTECTION PRACTICE WITH REFUGEE CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
How do you assess child protection concerns when trauma, culture, displacement and resettlement are all part of the picture?
Working with children and families from refugee backgrounds can bring additional complexity to child protection assessment and intervention.
Families may be living with the ongoing effects of war, persecution, forced displacement, family separation and refugee trauma, while simultaneously navigating the challenges of rebuilding their lives in Australia. Parents and children may adapt to their new environment at different rates, family roles can change, and understandings of parenting, discipline, independence and children’s rights may differ across cultures.
When child protection concerns arise, practitioners need to consider an important question: What are we seeing: cultural difference, the effects of trauma and resettlement, family stress, a child protection risk, or a combination of these factors?
This practical STARTTS workshop will strengthen your ability to recognise and assess child protection concerns involving refugee children and families while maintaining a clear focus on the safety and wellbeing of the child.
Led by experienced STARTTS practitioners and trainers, the workshop provides practical frameworks for trauma-informed, culturally safe and culturally responsive child protection practice.
WHY THIS WORKSHOP MATTERS
Children and families from refugee backgrounds may have experienced persecution, violence, loss, disrupted attachment, prolonged uncertainty and separation from family and community.
Arrival in Australia does not necessarily bring an end to these pressures. Resettlement can introduce new challenges, including language barriers, financial and housing stress, social isolation, unfamiliar systems, loss of traditional support networks and significant changes in family roles.
Parents may be managing their own trauma while trying to support children who have also experienced adversity and major change. Children and young people may adapt to Australian culture more quickly than their parents, potentially changing established family relationships, expectations and authority.
For professionals, this can make child protection assessment particularly complex.
Effective practice requires more than cultural awareness. Practitioners need to understand how refugee trauma, parenting across cultures, migration and resettlement pressures can interact with child safety and family functioning.
A trauma-informed and culturally safe approach can help practitioners make more nuanced assessments, avoid assumptions, identify genuine risks, recognise family strengths and engage children and parents more effectively.
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN
Understand Refugee Trauma and the Experiences of Refugee Families
Explore how persecution, organised violence, forced displacement, loss and resettlement can affect children, parents, relationships and family functioning.
Recognise How Trauma Can Affect Children
Understand how refugee trauma can influence children’s emotional and behavioural development, attachment, relationships and sense of safety, and how trauma responses may present in different children.
Understand the Impact of Trauma on Parenting
Explore how parents’ experiences of torture, trauma, loss and displacement may affect emotional availability, parenting capacity and family relationships.
Navigate Parenting Across Cultures
Examine different cultural understandings of parenting, discipline, family roles, children’s independence and responsibility, and consider what happens when these meet Australian child protection expectations.
Understand the Impact of Resettlement on Families
Explore how language barriers, financial pressures, housing difficulties, social isolation, changing family roles and navigating unfamiliar systems can increase stress and vulnerability within families.
Identify Child Protection Risk and Protective Factors
Strengthen your ability to identify factors that may increase the risk of harm while also recognising family strengths, resilience, relationships, community connections and other protective factors.
Make More Nuanced Child Protection Assessments
Learn to consider child safety alongside trauma history, culture, migration experiences, parenting practices, family circumstances and resettlement pressures, without allowing either culture or trauma to obscure genuine concerns about a child’s safety.
Understand Barriers to Disclosure and Service Engagement
Explore why children and families may be reluctant to disclose concerns or engage with services, including fear of authorities, previous experiences of persecution, shame, stigma, language barriers and unfamiliarity with Australian systems.
Engage Children and Families Safely and Respectfully
Develop practical strategies for building trust and engaging children, parents and families using trauma-informed, culturally safe and culturally responsive approaches.
Apply a Culturally Sensitive Child Protection Assessment Framework
Use a practical framework to guide conversations, explore concerns and support more informed child protection assessment and decision-making.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
Essential professional development for professionals working with refugee and culturally diverse children and families, including:
- Child protection practitioners
- Social workers and case managers
- Family support and early intervention practitioners
- Counsellors, psychologists and mental health professionals
- Teachers, school counsellors and education staff
- Health and allied health professionals
- Settlement and multicultural workers
- Youth and community workers
- Managers and team leaders in child and family services
- Other professionals responsible for the safety and wellbeing of children and families
FORMAT AND INCLUSIONS
- Online and in-person delivery
- Facilitated by an experienced trauma-informed practitioner
- Includes interactive activities, real-life scenarios, and skill practice
- Receive a certificate of completion
- Receive a PDF of the workshop slides
BRING THIS WORKSHOP TO YOUR TEAM
Would your team benefit from tailored, trauma-informed training? This workshop is available as an online and in-person in-house session (in-person available in Sydney only), customised to meet the specific needs of your staff, clients, or community. Visit our Request Training page for details on pricing, availability, and how to book.
Plan ahead: Due to high demand, we recommend submitting your request at least 6–8 weeks in advance to secure your preferred date. Empower your team with the confidence, skills, and cultural sensitivity to support refugee and asylum seeker communities effectively.
CONTACT US
stts-training@health.nsw.gov.au
(02) 9646 6700 Ask for the Training Administration Officer