In the lead-up to the public launch of the Australia Child Maltreatment Study results, Prof Ben Mathews, Lead investigator of the ACMS, has been providing requested in-confidence briefings to senior members of Australian Government departments about key ACMS findings. In-confidence briefings have been provided to the National Office for Child Safety, the Australian Inter-departmental Executive Group, the Attorney-General, and the Office for Women. These invited in-confidence

Yesterday as a part of Child Protection Week Prof Ben Mathews, Prof Daryl Higgins, and Dr Divna Haslam shared some early ACMS findings about the link between child maltreatment, specifically neglect and exposure to domestic violence (EDV), and clinical diagnosable mental health outcomes such as Major Depressive Disorder and Generalised Anxiety Disorder. ACMS data shows there are clear links between neglect and EDV and later mental health. Children who experience maltreatment

Research on child maltreatment is essential to generate new knowledge and inform advances in policy and practice. However, researchers must comply with a range of legal duties to survey participants. These duties are complex, vary across jurisdictions, and are difficult for all researchers and institutions to navigate. Prof Mathews has published a new article on the legal duties of researchers to protect participants in child maltreatment research . This new article provides

ACMS investigators Prof Ben Mathews, Prof Daryl Higgins, and Prof James Scott presented some of the preliminary findings of the ACMS youth sample at the Australian Institute of Family Studies national conference today. The symposium covered a number of early findings from the Australian Child Maltreatment youth sample comprising of 3500 young people (aged 16-24 years) from across Australia. This is a nationally representative sample so conclusions are likely to be represent

The Protocol Paper for the Australian Child Maltreatment Study has been published today in BMJ Open (IF 2.49). The paper provides a background to the study, a summary of its aims and objectives as well as an overview of the study design and methodology. The paper was peer-reviewed and published under open access restrictions. It can be accessed by anyone free of charge by clicking here . The citation for the paper is: Mathews B, Pacella R, Dunne M, et alThe Australian Child

On 9 December 2020, Professor Ben Mathews delivered a presentation on the Australian Child Maltreatment Study to the Australian Child Safe Sectors Leadership Group. The audience included representatives from child sector peak bodies and organisations with a national footprint that engage with children and young people. We were delighted to provide an update on our progress and future planning. Thanks to the National Office of Child Safety for hosting the presentation and prov

On 20 November 2020, Professor Ben Mathews and Professor Daryl Higgins delivered a presentation on the Australian Child Maltreatment Study to the Australian State and Territory Government Children and Family Secretaries (CAFS) Child Safety Working Group. The audience included over 100 representatives of 21 agencies from State and Territory government departments of health, education, families, communities, child protection, youth justice, and Treasury, and the Australian Depa

As part of the ACMS team’s expanding engagement with peak sector organisations, we were invited to discuss the Study at the Annual General Meeting of Families & Children Tasmania, the peak body for organisations providing child and family services in Tasmania. Thanks to Caroline Brown, Noel Mundy and the FACT Board for the invitation, and we look forward to further discussions in coming months and years!  The presentation is available  here .

On 21 September 2020, Professor Ben Mathews and Professor Daryl Higgins delivered a presentation on the Australian Child Maltreatment Study to 30 participants from 12 Australian Government agencies. The Presentation was hosted by the Department of the Prime Minister & Cabinet. We were delighted to provide an update on our progress, pilot study results, and future planning. Thanks to the National Office of Child Safety for hosting the presentation and providing continuing supp

On 8 October 2020, Professor Ben Mathews and Professor Daryl Higgins delivered a webinar on the Australian Child Maltreatment Study to Victoria’s Tri-Peaks Project. Tri-Peaks is a collaboration between the Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare, the Victorian Healthcare Association (VHA) and the Victorian Alcohol and Drug Association (VAADA), to support integrated practice and good governance. We were delighted to provide an update on our progress, including a disc

On 20 August, Professor Ben Mathews delivered a presentation on behalf of the ACMS team about the Australian Child Maltreatment Study to the Out of Home Care Philanthropic Funders Network. This Funders Group is a collaborative initiative between The Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare and Equity Trustees. The presentation focused on the nature and significance of the ACMS from scientific and policy impact perspectives. Further discussion centred on the relevance

In February 2020, Emma Fenby from the Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare invited Professor Ben Mathews who provide an update to centre staff and associates about the Australian Child Maltreatment Study. In his presentation Professor Mathews provided an overview of the ACMS goals and progress to date. The presentation covered the reasons an Australian prevalence study is needed as well as a detailed update on progress to date. This focussed primarily on substant

Dr Divna Haslam and Prof Daryl Higgins presented at the biennial Helping Families Change conference in Brisbane this February. This conference, hosted by the Parenting and Family Support Centre at The University of Queensland, showcases some of the best family based research and innovation from around the globe. On behalf of the ACMS team Dr Haslam presented a paper tilted “Issues in child maltreatment research: A case study of an Australian population survey”. The presentati

The accurate and valid measurement of the prevalence of child maltreatment can be difficult but is is vitally needed. A new systematic review addressing this issue has just been published in PlosOne by Prof Ben Mathews, Prof Rosana Pacella, and Prof Michael Dunne, from the ACMS team, along with their colleagues Marko Simunovic and Cicely Marston. This review makes a significant contribution to the field at large and formed part of the preparatory work for the ACMS. The system