<insert your service logo here>

<To Name>
<Title>
<Organisation>
<Address> / Our ref: <no>
Date: <date>

Dear <name>

Provision of information under Chapter 16A of the Children and Young Persons

(Care and Protection) Act 1998

Section 245Cof the Act allows a prescribed body to provide information toanother prescribed body that relates to the safety, welfare or wellbeing of one or more children or young persons or an unborn child or children or a class of children or young persons.

insert your agencyname is providing the information enclosed with this letter on the basis that there is a lawful reason to do so, in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 16A S245 (C)(2).

The information provided is in regard to:

Last Name / Date of Birth: dd/mmm/yyyy
First Name / Male/Female/Unknown/Other

<if you are providing information about other persons related to the child named above, complete the table shown here. If not, delete this table>

The information providedalso relates to regarding the following persons: <include if relevant>

Name / Gender / DOB / Relationship to child/young person / Other identifying information
LAST NAME>
<FIRST NAME / <(M/F/U/O)> / dd/mmm/yyyy / <insert> / <insert>
LAST NAME>
<FIRST NAME / <(M/F/U/O)> / dd/mmm/yyyy / <insert> / <insert>

The following is the information being provided by <insert your agency name>

Type information here, or type “See attached document”.
<insert details here as to how the information is relevant to the safety, welfare or wellbeing of the child/class of children. For a definition of ‘class of children’ see bottom of last page>

This information is provided because <insert your agency name believes it relates to the safety, welfare or wellbeing of the child or young person (or class of children or young persons) and will assist with:

making a decision, assessment or plan

initiating or conducting an investigation

providing a service and/or

managing a risk to a child or young person that might arise in our capacity as an employer or designated agency.

Should you decide, in accordance with Chapter 16A, to share some or all of this information, either on your own motion or in response to a request from a prescribed body, the information can only be shared on a confidential basis in accordance with the processes and principles of Chapter 16A.

If the information is sought from you for any purpose other than those described in Chapter 16A, you should refer the requesting organisation to the original owner of the information.

Should the information provided by insert your agency name be sought for use in court proceedings by any party, it is requested they be directed to do so by way of subpoena or summons and insert your agency name be informed of the request at your earliest convenience.

If you require further information or wish to discuss the matter, please contact your agency Contact Officer’s name> on < phone number> during business hours, quoting the reference shown at the top right of the front page.

Yours sincerely

<Providing Organisation’s Officer’s name and title>

Enclosed: Information

Additional information

Children And Young Persons (Care And Protection) Act 1998

245D Request for information

(1) A prescribed body (the "requesting agency") may request another prescribed body to provide the requesting agency with any information held by the other body that relates to the safety, welfare or well-being of a particular child or young person or class of children or young persons.

(2) Any such request may be made for the purposes of assisting the requesting agency:

(a)to make any decision, assessment or plan or to initiate or conduct any investigation, or to provide any service, relating to the safety, welfare or well-being of the child or young person or class of children or young persons, or

(b) to manage any risk to the child or young person (or class of children or young persons) that might arise in the agency’s capacity as an employer or designated agency.

(3) If a prescribed body receives a request under this section, the prescribed body is required to comply with the request if it reasonably believes, after being provided with sufficient information by the requesting agency to enable the other body to form that belief, that the information may assist the requesting agency for any purpose referred to in subsection (2).

(4) A prescribed body is not required to provide any information that it has been requested to provide if the body reasonably believes that to do so would:

(a) prejudice the investigation of a contravention (or possible contravention) of a law in any particular case, or

(b) prejudice a coronial inquest or inquiry, or

(c) prejudice any care proceedings, or

(d) contravene any legal professional or client legal privilege, or

(e) enable the existence or identity of a confidential source of information in relation to the enforcement or administration of a law to be ascertained, or

(f) endanger a person’s life or physical safety, or

(g) prejudice the effectiveness of a lawful method or procedure for preventing, detecting, investigating or dealing with a contravention (or possible contravention) of a law, or

(h) not be in the public interest.

(5) If a prescribed body refuses to provide information in accordance with a request under this section, the prescribed body must, at the time it notifies the requesting agency of the refusal, provide the requesting agency with reasons in writing for refusing the request.

Class of Children

When making a risk of significant harm report, one option is to report a ‘class’ of children. The FACS Mandatory Reporter Guide 2014 identifies a class of children as “…a group of children/young people having incommon one attribute or a number of similar attributes. A class of children report should be considered when there is sufficient reason to believe a class of children/young people is currently at risk of significant harm.

For example, a staff member may have abused a child or be suspected of abusing a child and there are concerns for all the children in the group or service the child attends or attended

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