National Redress Scheme

SASS can help you to access the National Redress Scheme

The National Redress Scheme can help you get access to three things:

counselling
a Redress payment, and
a direct personal response from an institution (e.g an apology).

If you receive an offer of redress, you can accept any or all of these things. This is your choice.

Who can apply to the National Redress Scheme?

You can apply to the National Redress Scheme if:

you experienced sexual abuse when you were a child (under 18 years of age) and you were born before 30 June 2010
the abuse happened before 1 July 2018
an institution was responsible for bringing you into contact with the person who abused you*
at the time you apply, you are an Australian citizen or a permanent resident

Please seek further information from us if you:

were abused in an institution that hasn’t joined the National Redress Scheme
are currently under 18 years of age
have ever been sentenced to more than 5 years in jail
have already received a payment related to the abuse

When is an organisation responsible?

The National Redress Scheme holds institutions accountable for child sexual abuse. For example, while in the care of an institution, child sexual abuse occurred:

on the premises of an institution, such as a school, a church, a club, an orphanage or children’s home
where activities of an institution take place, such as a camp or a sporting facility
or by an official of an institution, such as a teacher, a religious figure like a priest or nun, a coach or camp leader

For you to access redress, the institution responsible for the abuse must have joined the National Redress Scheme.

What are the next steps?

We offer free confidential services across all regions of Tasmania including to help people engage with the National Redress Scheme. This includes:

information about the National Redress Scheme
explanation on what to expect through the application process
assistance to complete the Scheme’s application form and support through the application process
assistance to access other appropriate services such as legal and financial counselling or other community services
trauma-informed support delivered face-to-face and over the phone assistance to understand a redress outcome
support to request a direct personal response from the institution

National Redress Scheme

SASS can help you to access the National Redress Scheme

Who can apply to the National Redress Scheme?

When is an organisation responsible?

What are the next steps?

Contact us to speak with one of our National Redress Scheme specialists.