Children's Week 2024 (21 Oct 2024)

Hi everyone

I am very pleased to welcome and celebrate Children’s Week and the events happening across our state and State Service this week.

Children’s Week runs from 19 - 27 October and is a national celebration of the rights and talents of children, including their right to enjoy childhood. It provides us with the opportunity to recognise the experiences of children and the significant impact these formative experiences have on their development and life-long path.

The national theme for 2024 is “Children have the right to a clean and safe environment”, based on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child Article 24. The Convention on the Rights of the Child is an important international human rights agreement, and I would encourage all staff to familiarise themselves with these rights.

The rights, safety and wellbeing of children and young people are a priority for the State Service. All departments have been working to implement the Child and Youth Safe Organisations Framework and I would like to thank our staff for their ongoing efforts to make our agencies and government institutions child safe.

The Tasmanian Government is recognising Children’s Week in 2024 and will be relaunching the Tell Someone campaign. This campaign will raise awareness of child sexual abuse and grooming behaviours and will encourage all Tasmanians to speak up about suspicious behaviour. Our departments will be working collaboratively to promote this campaign out to the community.

Child safety will also feature prominently during Children’s Week at the Royal Hobart Show, with DPAC’s Keeping Children Safe Unit raising awareness and DECYP recruiting for new child safety officers. Tasmania Police and Tasmania Legal Aid will also be in attendance to raise community awareness and build trust in our safety and support services.

More Children’s Week events are happening right across the state, with many community and government agency events outlined on the Playgroup Tasmania website.

Thank you and have a great Children’s Week!

Kathrine Morgan-Wicks
Head of the State Service
Secretary, Department of Premier and Cabinet
21 Oct 2024