What can you do to feel safe?

• Make a Safety Plan
• Find a safe place
• Call the police on 000
• Call Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800
• Call the Child Abuse Report Line on 1 800 342 3720
• Tell someone you trust
• Call someone else you trust

Make a Safety Plan

An emergency can happen very quickly and it might be tricky to remember the ways you can keep yourself safe. That's why it's a good idea to have a think about how to keep yourself safe if your parents' fighting gets too serious or if you're afraid of getting hurt yourself. When you open this PDF document there are some questions you can think about and write down the answers. If an emergency happens, you will be prepared. Remember to keep this list somewhere secret so no one will find it by accident.

Find a safe place

Think about a few places in or around your home where you can go to get away from the fighting. This will keep you safe.

Call the police on 000

If you're frightened at home or if your parents are fighting, you can call 000 for the police. When you call the police they will want to know what's going on. They'll probably ask you to describe what is happening, who's in the house with you and what each person in the house is doing. They'll ask if anyone is hurt. They'll ask you for your name and address so that they can come to help you. They might ask you to stay on the phone (if you can) until an officer arrives to help. It doesn't cost anything to call the police.

Call Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800) or Child Abuse Report Line (1 800 342 3720)

When you ring one of the helplines for children and young people you can talk to them in confidence. They won't tell anyone about what you have said unless you ask them to or unless you're in great danger. They'll listen to you and help you sort out what you can do and where you might be able to get help. This can be good for all sorts of problems. It doesn't cost anything to call either the Kids Helpline or the Child Abuse Report Line.

Tell someone

Tell someone you trust what is going on. This might be a family member, a professional adult like your school counsellor, teacher, doctor, or another adult who you trust and feel comfortable with like your auntie or grandparents. If the first person you tell does not help, then keep on telling people you trust until you feel safer and the problem has been shared. Click here to find out how to tell someone.

Call someone else you trust

It's a good idea to tell a friend or adult who you trust, about what is happening at home, so if you call them in an emergency they'll know what's going on and how to help you.