At The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award – Australia (the Duke of Ed), the safety and well-being of children and young people is our top priority. As the National Award Operator in Australia, licensed by the International Award Foundation to deliver the Duke of Ed Framework, we license organisations as Duke of Ed Centres to deliver/manage youth activities. This licence requires Duke of Ed Centres to have policies and procedures to safeguard young people. The Duke of Ed undertakes ongoing training and quality assurance of Duke of Ed Centres as part of our commitment to creating a safe, supportive, and empowering environment for all Duke of Ed Users, staff, and volunteers.

Young people register with a Duke of Ed Centre to use the Duke of Ed Framework as Duke of Ed Users. Young people may undertake activities through activity providers not licensed by the Duke of Ed or its Award Operating Authorities. The Duke of Ed Centre is responsible for ensuring these activity providers and their staff and/or volunteers uphold safeguarding policies and procedures of both its organisation and the Duke of Ed. The Duke of Ed Centre, and their approved Activity Assessors and activity providers, are responsible for obtaining the consent of parents, carers and guardians where Duke of Ed Users are under 18 years old.

We have a zero-tolerance approach to child abuse. We take any allegation or concern very seriously. We adhere to our legal, moral and mandatory obligations to report concerns to the appropriate authorities whenever a child's safety is at risk. We actively work to prevent abuse by identifying potential risks early and taking steps to reduce those risks. We prioritise training and education of our Board and staff helping them recognise and respond to child protection issues.

Further information on child safety is available at the Australian Government National Office for Child Safety.