New South Wales Consolidated Acts

OMBUDSMAN ACT 1974 - SECT 25A

25A Definitions

(1) In this Part:
"child" means a person under the age of 18 years.
"designated government agency" means any of the following:

(a) the Department of Education and Training (including a government school), the Department of Community Services, the Department of Health, the Department of Sport and Recreation, the Department of Juvenile Justice or the Department of Corrective Services,

(b) an area health service within the meaning of the Health Services Act 1997 ,

(c) any other public authority prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this definition.

"designated non-government agency" means any of the following:

(a) a non-government school within the meaning of the Education Act 1990 ,

(b) a designated agency within the meaning of the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 (not being a department referred to in paragraph (a) of the definition of "designated government agency" in this subsection) or a licensed children’s service within the meaning of that Act,

(c) an agency providing substitute residential care for children,

(d) any other body prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this definition.

"employee" of an agency includes:

(a) any employee of the agency, whether or not employed in connection with any work or activities of the agency that relates to children, and

(b) any individual engaged by the agency to provide services to children (including in the capacity of a volunteer).

"head" of an agency means the chief executive officer or other principal officer of the agency. The regulations may specify the person who is to be regarded as the head of a particular agency for the purposes of this definition.
"investigation" of a matter includes any preliminary or other inquiry into, or examination of, the matter.
"reportable allegation" means an allegation of reportable conduct against a person or an allegation of misconduct that may involve reportable conduct.
"reportable conduct" means:

(a) any sexual offence, or sexual misconduct, committed against, with or in the presence of a child (including a child pornography offence), or

(b) any assault, ill-treatment or neglect of a child, or

(c) any behaviour that causes psychological harm to a child,

whether or not, in any case, with the consent of the child. Reportable conduct does not extend to:

(a) conduct that is reasonable for the purposes of the discipline, management or care of children, having regard to the age, maturity, health or other characteristics of the children and to any relevant codes of conduct or professional standards, or

(b) the use of physical force that, in all the circumstances, is trivial or negligible, but only if the matter is to be investigated and the result of the investigation recorded under workplace employment procedures, or

(c) conduct of a class or kind exempted from being reportable conduct by the Ombudsman under section 25CA.

Note: Examples of conduct that would not constitute "reportable conduct" include (without limitation) touching a child in order to attract a child’s attention, to guide a child or to comfort a distressed child; a school teacher raising his or her voice in order to attract attention or to restore order in the classroom; and conduct that is established to be accidental.

"reportable allegation" means an allegation of reportable conduct against a person or an allegation of misconduct that may involve reportable conduct.
"reportable conviction" means a conviction (including a finding of guilt without the court proceeding to a conviction), in this State or elsewhere, of an offence involving reportable conduct.

(2) A reference in this Part to a designated government or non-government agency is a reference to a designated government agency or a designated non-government agency.

(3) A reference in this Part to a reportable allegation or a reportable conviction extends to any such allegation or conviction in respect of a matter occurring before the commencement of this Part.