Join our team
14 OctoberWe are excited to be offering two new positions based in Canberra: Research Fellow/Senior Research Fellow and Research Associate.
Children and young people do best when they live and grow in safe and thriving families and communities. Their safety and wellbeing are central to our work. Understanding their experiences and providing them opportunities to inform our work helps us create evidence-informed solutions for services, systems, policies and practices.
As part of ACU, we are deeply committed to progressing the common good, in fighting injustice and helping to resolve challenges confronting those at the edges of society. We do this by strengthening the capacity of families, communities, and workforces to prevent child maltreatment. By fostering thriving communities we can play a role in improving the safety and wellbeing of children and young people.
Learn about what we doWe are excited to be offering two new positions based in Canberra: Research Fellow/Senior Research Fellow and Research Associate.
We are delighted to have contributed to the newly published revitalised journal for child, youth and family services.
If your research passion is in child wellbeing and prevention of abuse, neglect and maltreatment, the Institute of Child Protection Studies could supervise your studies...
This year's theme "Every conversation matters" reminds us how important it is to listen and to believe children and young people when they have concerns.
Professor Daryl Higgins and the team behind the landmark Australian Child Maltreatment Study (ACMS) who have won a Queensland Child Protection Week Award.
One in 250 Australians were sexually abused during childhood by a leader or other adult in a religious organisation, new research led by ACU shows.
The Tuned In modules provide practical guidance on how to make group settings safe for young people to talk about sensitive issues.
We are inviting religious leaders to share their experiences on child safeguarding practices. Insights into policies and practices and where efforts are still needed wi...
How does autism affect the sibling relationship in families with an autistic adolescent family member?
Revelations that a student shared fake nudes of 50 schoolgirls using AI generated photos has raised a thorny issue. This places greater duress on parents and schools on...
Preventing child sexual abuse can be tackled in many ways. We are familiar with pre-employment screening and Working with Children Checks. But these steps alone are not...
Lay members of the Catholic Church have scored lowest on a range of child safeguarding measures compared with those holding other roles, new ACU-led global research sho...
Practitioners and researchers have so many measures to choose from - it can be difficult to understand where to start or what to use. Come to our webinar to learn more ...
If your research passion is in child wellbeing and prevention of abuse, neglect and maltreatment, the Institute of Child Protection Studies could supervise your studies...
Connecting kids in care to mental health services matters. Your experience in supporting children and young people in out-of-home care can help us learn more. If you ca...
Families of children with autism told ACU researcher Dr Sebastian Trew of the Institute of Child Protection Studies that the school environment negatively influenced th...
With school students returning to the classroom, ACU Institute of Child Protection Studies Director Professor Daryl Higgins and ICPS Research Officer Gabrielle Hunt hav...
Australians with diverse sexualities or genders are three times more likely to experience child maltreatment than heterosexual Australians, or cisgendered males, new AC...
A warm welcome to Dr Mary Ann Powell, joining us as Senior Research Fellow.
New ACU research has identified a complex interplay of child, parental, and contextual factors associated with the maltreatment of children by their families.
In a RESPECT Victoria project on drivers of men's violence against women, we examined a range of factors to understand why child maltreatment occurs.
ACU study of asylum seekers and refugees in Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic found that their experiences intensified domestic partner violence and financial stre...
Season’s greetings from all of us at the Institute of Child Protection Studies. All the very best for a merry festive season and happy new year. We will be open till 22...
Smacking and physical punishment of children in Australia have been highlighted in a national study. A survey of 8500 people has revealed that almost 6 in 10 young peop...
The Director of ACU's Institute of Child Protection Studies, Professor Daryl Higgins, has examined a new Government website designed to provide a comprehensive picture ...
ICPS acknowledges the suffering and sorrow of so many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples following the result of Saturday's referendum.
Systemic failures identified by the Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government’s Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings must be addressed to...
Passionate about children and young people and their safety? Join our team of child and youth focused researchers who are looking for someone to make a difference.
A Voice to Parliament will give First Nations peoples a greater say on the laws, policies and services that affect families and children. It will provide a national pla...
Relying only on Working with Children checks is wiping our hands clean of responsibility.
Workers can play an important role in educating children and young people about respectful relationships.
Children and young people are more likely to tell someone if an adult rather than a peer is making them feel unsafe, new Australian Catholic University research shows.
Corporal punishment should be prohibited nationally and supported by a public education campaign and greater access to parental supports, according to a new research pa...
Australian-first research into the prevalence of childhood maltreatment has revealed almost two-thirds of children who experience any child abuse or neglect have been s...
Paramedics are an underutilised resource when it comes to safeguarding children in the home, according to a new study highlighting the need to improve paramedics’ abili...
Too many vulnerable young people known to child protection authorities are dying.
Royal Commission anniversary highlights need to also safeguard children in non-institutional family settings
New ACU research has given a rare voice to parents who become involved with child protection authorities during pregnancy or via infant removal.
We welcome your submission to present at an international congress on parenting and family intervention.
ACU research has identified four key themes to address to make youth feel safe in faith-based groups.
Sharing achievements of our dedicated and talented staff.
We are part of a national campaign that aims to reform Australia’s current legislation, and give parents access to alternative evidence-based parenting strategies.
Early findings from study show the significant negative impact of child abuse and neglect on people's lives.
ACU researchers have been awarded more than $2 million in Australian Research Council grants.
Seven new research centres will enhance ACU’s reputation in the arts, education, health, and theology and philosophy.
Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Vice-Chancellor Professor Greg Craven launched the Institute of Religion Politics and Society’s leadership series with a dialogue a...
Ritual, belief and habituation: Religion and religions from the axial age to the Anthropocene
Given the plurality of readings of the secularisation thesis, please could you give us a summary of your own take on our sub-discipline’s paradigmatic theory?
This article is part of the Democracy Futures series, a joint global initiative with the Sydney Democracy Network. The project aims to stimulate fresh thinking about th...
Prepared by Parliamentary Library Fellow Dr Tom Barnes and a research team from the Australian Catholic University, the research paper, titled ‘Transition to where?’, i...
This volume takes up the challenge posed by Bryan Turner, when he noted “the absence of any systematic thinking about familial relations, reproduction and citizenship” ...
We announced last month that Bryan S. Turner and Berna Zengin Arslan were the winners of the 2014 Sociological Review Prize for Outstanding Scholarship for their articl...
ACU researchers are celebrating after a strong performance in the 2015 Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) assessment. The performance affirms ACU’s rapidly risi...
Following the tragic terror attacks in Paris, the world turns its attention to the organisation behind the carnage. Do we now need to rethink our approach toward ISIS,...
The terrorist attacks in Paris and Beirut have elicited a disturbingly predictable series of responses. We’ve witnessed the usual political posturing, harsh military r...
The Alexander-von-Humboldt Foundation and the Max Planck Society honour Hans Joas and Bryan S. Turner for their research.
Based on recent research in Detroit, including multiple interviews with its civic, business and political leaders, this is one of the first reports to document these co...
Children who are physically abused have a high likelihood of being adversely affected into adulthood.
We work collaboratively with government and industry organisations focused on child safety, child wellbeing and child rights. Our strong relationships with researchers, policy makers in government, organisational leaders and community partners ensure that our work has impact. We contribute to national conversations as well as organisational growth by offering consultations and delivering presentations.
Our key expertise is in qualitative and quantitative research with eminent researchers, institutions and community organisations. We draw on technical tools such as surveys, evidence reviews, interviews and focus groups. And we also engage with adults and children to learn from their lived experience.
Using a variety of approaches, we address issues including children’s safety; child sexual abuse child protection services; child, youth and family services; the effects of adverse childhood experiences on mental health; youth justice and children’s courts; and public policy.
The Safeguarding Children and Young People portal links organisations to resources, training and up-to-date research, helping them create an environment that’s transparent and accountable for keeping children safe.
Visit the portalUnderstand ACU’s organisational structure and learn more about our faculties, research, staff and administrative divisions.
Browse directoratesComplete a masters by research or a PhD doctorate with us and make a valuable contribution to your field and your community.
Get startedAs a university of service, we are committed to making an impact through ongoing community engagement and volunteering.
Embrace for impactDiscover what support is available for your research, including guidance on how to get funding and manage a project.
Browse now
We're available 9am–5pm AEDT,
Monday to Friday
If you’ve got a question, our AskACU team has you covered. You can search FAQs, text us, email, live chat, call – whatever works for you.