The conceptual framework of this study is that a whole-of-community approach – across the continuum of prevention to treatment – is necessary for better protecting CALD children from risk of sexual harm.

PARENTS/GUARDIANS

Education for carers in CALD communities needs to be about:

• The prevalence of child sexual abuse (i.e. that it is high across cultures).

• Likely perpetrators of child sexual abuse (i.e. those that are known to the victim rather than unknown strangers).

• Myths about child sexual abuse (i.e. false beliefs that shift culpability/blame to the victim).

• The importance of believing a child’s disclosure of child sexual abuse (to help mediate the effects on mental ill-health).

• The importance of granting permission for children to take part in school-based prevention programs about child sexual abuse (i.e. despite cultural norms to not discuss any sexual matters).

• The importance of seeking formal help for possible ensuing mental illnesses (e.g. counsellors, social workers, psychologists).

• The role of governments in protecting child safety.

 SCHOOLS

Education for teachers supporting prevention programs designed for children needs to be about:

• Child sexual abuse (i.e. high cross-cultural prevalence, likely perpetrators being known, and myths that shift blame to the victim).

• Self-protective behaviours (even against adults that children will have been raised to have utmost deference for).

• Who to disclose to when seeking formal and informal help.

• Practice protocols following disclosure of child sexual abuse (e.g. the importance of supportive responses to disclosure, acknowledgment of racism as a unique barrier to disclosure for CALD victims, and awareness of the utmost importance of family reputation in CALD communities).

SERVICE ORGANISATIONS

Education for service providers needs to be about:

• Child sexual abuse (i.e. high prevalence, likely perpetrators, and myths that shift blame from the perpetrator).

• Cultural knowledge (i.e. awareness of the importance/relevance of supportive responses to disclosure, and racism and family reputation as barriers to disclosure).

• Cultural competency (i.e. having an ethnically diverse workforce including in management positions, using interpreters trained in matters relating to sexual assault, providing regular staff training, using a ‘multicultural framework’ within the organisation, and mandatorily collecting ethnicity-related data).

• The pros and cons of medicalising mental illness as a result of child sexual abuse over the use of a sociological framework.

• The importance of encouraging additional self-help (and group therapy with other victims/survivors or family therapy with non-offending members if helpful).

The study will be carried out in three stages. Two of them (Stages 1 and 3) will involve a longitudinal follow-up component, and all of them will use a mix of question types (i.e. quantitative surveys and qualitative open-ended responses).

Ethics approval will be obtained from the Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) at Griffith University, and the Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia, and Victoria Departments of Education (these four states have been selected as study sites because of their high cultural diversity).

Stage 1 (2018–2020) was partly funded by Griffith University. It involved training service providers such as counsellors, social workers, and psychologists on key issues relevant to CALD children, families, and communities so they were more likely to deliver a ‘culturally competent’ service (HREC Approval No. 2018/953).

Stage 2 (dates TBD) will occur if funding is secured. It will involve educating CALD parents/guardians about child sexual abuse through an online community outreach program that is privately/anonymously accessible so they will be better able to protect their children with accurate information.

Stage 3 (dates TBD) will occur if funding is secured. It will involve comparing a standard child sexual abuse prevention program in schools to one that has been modified to be culturally informed and sensitive so school staff will have better protocols when CALD children disclose abuse.