Mini vic.gov.au

This is a low bandwidth version of vic.gov.au. Contents may not be up to date. © Copyright State Government of Victoria

Refer: respond to student-to-student abuse

Guidance on how to refer students to community services. Refer is one of the 4 Critical Actions.

Schools

As soon as you believe a student has been, or is at risk of being abused by another student, you must act.

4 CRITICAL ACTIONS

⬣ Identify ▲ Report ● Support ■ Refer

On this page

Note: This page is about responding to non-family violence incidents. When student-to-student abuse is defined as family violence (intimate partner relationships and siblings), go to respond to abuse in the family and follow the steps.

Refer students to community services

Your school can refer students to a range of specialist support services that are available in the community. Refer complements support. Both actions can happen at the same time if that is the best way to help the student.

Specialist support services assist with:

Specialist support services are available to assist:

Students can also access further support and information directly. You can provide them with a list of helplines and websites.

Identify a suitable service

Before you engage with students and their parents or carers, highlight which services are likely to be the most suitable.

This will depend on:

Open all

For matters involving sexual offences schools can refer directly to local sexual assault services. This includes local Centres Against Sexual Assault (CASAs) and harmful sexual behaviour services. These services will provide:

Key services for students who have experienced student-to-student abuse are:

You can also consider:

Help students connect to a service

Talk to students and their parents or carers about the services that are available. This can help them choose the service that best meets their needs.

Ideally, a student will self-refer to a service, with the help and support of their parents or carers. However, your school can help to connect a student to a service. You could do this by making a phone call to the service with, or on behalf of the student.

Open all

Decisions about the needs of First Nations Peoples should be made by First Nations Peoples.

If someone identifies as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, they can choose to be supported by a worker from an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation (ACCO).

See a list of ACCOs.

Your school should continue to:

You may refer a student without their parents’ or carers’ knowledge or consent when:

Contact the service to seek advice if you are unsure about whether you can make a referral without the parents’ or carers’ knowledge or consent.

Access to specialist services varies across communities. If local support is limited or not immediately available, schools can contact:

If a student is using harmful sexual behaviours, and their parents or carers are not willing or able to help the student connect to a service, you can call Child Protection. This is important if there is another child or young person, such as a sibling, living in the same house as the student using harmful sexual behaviours. That child or young person may be at risk of sexual abuse.

Child Protection will undertake a risk assessment and determine if further action is required.

If Child Protection assesses that a student needs therapeutic treatment, they will connect them to a service for sexual abuse behaviour treatment.

If the student is unlikely to access the service voluntarily, Child Protection can apply for a Therapeutic Treatment Order. This will require the student and their parents or carers to attend a service.

Call Child Protection

During business hours (8:45am to 5pm, Monday to Friday), call the intake service for the student’s local government area (LGA) where they normally live:

If you are unsure which number to call, find which LGAs are in each intake service at Child Protection contacts.

You cannot make Child Protection reports online or via email.

Engage school staff with information sharing responsibilities to share and request information with and from other Information Sharing Entities (ISEs) under the Child Information Sharing Scheme (CISS).

For example, your school can:

Continue to help students as appropriate

If your school helps to refer a student to a specialist support service, that service may inform you of the outcome of the referral.

If you are not part of the referral, you may still learn of the outcome through an information sharing request. For example, this could happen if the student self-referred.

The service may tell you:

If a student or their parents or carers do not want to engage with a service at this time, you can give them the list of services, helplines and websites.

By giving them this list, the student or their parents or carers can directly connect with further support and information when they are ready. This is another way to help them feel empowered and make it more likely that they seek help, even if it is not immediate.

Follow up with the student or their parent or carers to ensure they can access the services they need. If the student is unable to access a service, consider alternatives that may be available.

At all times, you should:

This should be in collaboration with:

Next steps

Continue the 4 Critical Actions

While you refer the student, continue to support them. You may need to support and refer the student at the same time.

You may also need to report to authorities.

⬣ Identify ▲ Report ● Support ■ Refer

Education & training

Updated 30 March 2026

At all times

Throughout the 4 Critical Actions, you must:

About the VIC Government

Grants and programs

Jobs and careers

Arts, culture and heritage

Business and the workplace

Communities

Education and training

Environment, water and energy

Finance and economy

Health and social support

Housing and property

Law and justice

Safety and emergencies

Science and technology

Sport and recreation

Traffic and transport

Working in the Victorian Government