Content warning: Please be aware that submissions may contain sensitive information about historical child sexual abuse that may be distressing to read. If this content raises any issues or concerns for you, we recommend getting in touch with one of the support services on our Support and wellbeing page.
Submissions process
On 7 September 2023, the Board of Inquiry invited submissions from individuals or organisations who had relevant experiences, information or expertise to share.
The Board of Inquiry welcomed submissions in any format, including online, via mail, or in audio or audio-visual formats, and of any length. All people making a submission were prompted to elect how they wished to have their information treated, with the assurance that they could change their preference at any time. The Board of Inquiry specifically sought submissions from victim-survivors, secondary victims (such as partners, children, parents, siblings and extended family) and affected community members.
The Board of Inquiry received 52 submissions from victim-survivors, secondary victims, affected community members, service providers, researchers and experts, and organisations. Of these, 41 submissions were determined to be in scope, including 34 from individuals and seven from organisations. You can read public submissions received from organisations below.
Following careful consideration, the Board of Inquiry has not published the submissions we received from individuals. Many of these submissions were shared confidentially, while others were shared anonymously but included information that is unable to be de-identified. In other cases, the submissions were unable to be published due to legal, privacy, safety or wellbeing reasons.
The Board of Inquiry sincerely thanks every person who took the time to share their deeply personal experiences with us and contribute to our work. The Board of Inquiry carefully considered each submission it received, and all helped shape our understanding of the child sexual abuse and harm that was experienced.
By publishing a submission, the Board of Inquiry expresses no opinion as to the content or accuracy of that submission, or other materials to which the submissions may refer. The views expressed in submissions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Board of Inquiry.
Two submissions were received from other organisations, Maurice Blackburn and Angela Sdrinis Legal, but were not published due to legal and privacy reasons.
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