When should a concern go to the police or child protection?

Q: When should a concern go to the police or child protection?

Play by the Rules' MPIO Complaint Referral Guide says: Immediate danger or threats to safety: call 000. Risk of significant harm to a child in the form of grooming, sexual abuse, physical abuse or neglect: contact local child protection services and/or police. Online abuse: you can refer the person to the eSafety Commissioner's guidance on how to deal with online abuse in sport. Play by the Rules also says volunteer complaint handlers should not investigate allegations of child abuse or grooming, and should not withhold information when requested as part of police or child protection investigations. For a concern about a person under 18, the same guide lists these options. If the sport is signed up to the National Integrity Framework: report through the Sport Integrity Australia complaints webform, or call the Safe Sport Hotline on 1800 161 361 (7am to 7pm, 7 days a week). If it is not: refer the person to the national or state sporting organisation contacts in the sport's Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy, or call the Safe Sport Hotline for advice. Sources: Play by the Rules, MPIO Complaint Referral Guide (2025); Complaints Handlers (July 2025).

Question

Accepted Answer

Play by the Rules' MPIO Complaint Referral Guide says:

Immediate danger or threats to safety: call 000.
Risk of significant harm to a child in the form of grooming, sexual abuse, physical abuse or neglect: contact local child protection services and/or police.
Online abuse: you can refer the person to the eSafety Commissioner's guidance on how to deal with online abuse in sport.

Play by the Rules also says volunteer complaint handlers should not investigate allegations of child abuse or grooming, and should not withhold information when requested as part of police or child protection investigations.

For a concern about a person under 18, the same guide lists these options. If the sport is signed up to the National Integrity Framework: report through the Sport Integrity Australia complaints webform, or call the Safe Sport Hotline on 1800 161 361 (7am to 7pm, 7 days a week). If it is not: refer the person to the national or state sporting organisation contacts in the sport's Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy, or call the Safe Sport Hotline for advice.

Sources: Play by the Rules, MPIO Complaint Referral Guide (2025); Complaints Handlers (July 2025).