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Helping end family violence - the Information Sharing Schemes and MARAM

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For users wishing to access the Protecting Children - Mandatory Reporting course please either Log in if you are an existing user, or Sign up if you are a new user. Please see instructions here for Non-Government Schools or professionals wishing to access this course.

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information sharing and maram online learning system: log in to the site

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Information Sharing and MARAM Online Learning System: Log in to the site

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For users wishing to access the Protecting Children - Mandatory Reporting course please either Log in if you are an existing user, or Sign up if you are a new user. Please see instructions here for Non-Government Schools or professionals wishing to access this course.

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The link will take you to all the information, templates, and resources you need.

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The link will take you to all the information, templates, and resources you need.

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This page contains a list of frequently asked questions about the Child Information Sharing Scheme (CISS), the Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme (FVISS) and MARAM. It also contains questions about related topics such as training.

Note the 'Schemes' collectively refers to CISS and FVISS.

1. An information sharing entity is an organisation or service that has been prescribed in legislation to request and share information under CISS and FVISS.

Information sharing entities can request and share information under the information sharing schemes.

Please refer to and for further guidance.

Information sharing entities are prescribed under:

This means that organisations and services do not need to register as an information sharing entity.

2. No. Although most organisations are prescribed across all three reforms, there are some organisations that are only prescribed for some of the reforms.

You can visit the information sharing and MARAM website for further information on or refer to and for guidance.

3. Information sharing entities determine how the reforms are implemented in their organisation.

Information sharing entities should identify those roles in the organisation or service that are appropriate to use the Scheme to make or respond to requests and voluntarily share information, on behalf of the information sharing entity.

Information sharing entities must be satisfied that any individual or role authorised to use the Schemes on their behalf are:

individuals using the Schemes on behalf of an information sharing entity must be employed or otherwise contracted (i.e. not a volunteer) by the information sharing entity

be suitably trained and competent in use of the Schemes

4. Your organisation will have been advised by the relevant department regarding what services within your organisation are prescribed. Where confirmation is required, we recommend contacting the relevant department directly.

Sharing and responding to requests made under the Schemes

1. You can make a request under the Schemes verbally or in writing. Some services may have additional operational requirements for making a request, such as receiving the request via a form or email.

2. Under the Schemes, you can respond to a request either verbally or in writing. Please note that you should ensure relevant thresholds and purposes for sharing are met, and that you comply with record keeping requirements under the schemes and the relevant privacy requirements for your organisation, including relevant data security standards.

You should respond to requests in a timely manner, in particular you should respond without delay where there is a risk to the safety of a person.

Refer to and for more information, or contact us at or on with any questions.

3. Yes, information sharing entities are permitted to share information with other information sharing entities voluntarily under the information sharing schemes as long as:

the purpose and consent thresholds are met

the information being shared is not excluded information, and

sharing it would not contravene another law

Under FVISS, all information sharing entities may proactively share relevant information with Risk Assessment Entities (RAEs) for a family violence assessment purpose and with all information sharing entities for a family violence protection purpose.

4. If you do not already know that the person requesting the information works for an information sharing entities (for example, through an existing relationship with or knowledge of that person), you should verify their identity prior to sharing any information (e.g. you can ask them to send an email from their official work account or contact the information sharing entities' switchboard).

Information on what services are prescribed as information sharing entities can be found in and , as well as the webpage .

5. Yes, information sharing entities can refuse to provide information in response to a request under the Schemes:

when the threshold for sharing is not met (see the section, 'For what purposes can information be shared under the Schemes?')

where the information is not relevant to the purpose for which information is being requested (see the section, 'For what purposes can information be shared under the Schemes?')

where the information is excluded information

where sharing that information would contravene another law

where sharing would be inconsistent with the legislative principles (as relevant under CISS only)

where applicable consent thresholds have not been met (if required under FVISS only)

If an information sharing entities refuses a request for information, it must record the request and the reason it was refused and provide the reason to the requesting information sharing entities in writing. However, information sharing entities are not required to provide reasons where it would be inappropriate to provide details of the specific ground for the particular exclusion (e.g. where it would prejudice a criminal investigation). It would then be sufficient to refuse on the grounds that the information is excluded.

Refer to and of the CISS Guidelines and for more information about refusing a request for information.

6. No, but information sharing entities should respond in a timely manner to a request from another information sharing entity; and must provide relevant information if the legal requirements of the Schemes are met.

Although no formal time limit is imposed for responding to requests under the Schemes, information sharing entities should ensure that they respond to requests in a timely manner, taking into account risk issues.

An information sharing entity should prioritise requests for information that pertain to safety risks, including family violence. In particular, where a serious threat has been identified, information sharing entities should respond to those requests for information without delay.

7. Where there is not sufficient information for an information sharing entity to form a reasonable belief that a person poses a risk of family violence, the person may be considered an 'alleged perpetrator'. Information about an alleged perpetrator may be shared without consent with Risk Assessment Entities (RAEs) for a family violence assessment purpose, to determine if they are a perpetrator and assess the level of risk they pose.

8. Where it is established that a person has been incorrectly identified as a perpetrator, an information sharing entity should stop sharing information about that person as a perpetrator under FVISS and should instead share their information in the same way as other victim survivors, which might mean seeking their consent.

A service should make their best efforts to correct their records and any information that has already been disclosed to other information sharing entities. The correction of records should occur in a timely manner to reduce any likelihood that incorrect information will continue to be shared. Individual officers will not be held liable for incorrectly sharing this information where it has been done in good faith and with reasonable care.

Refer to or for more information.

Intersections between the Schemes and with other laws

1. The information sharing schemes are designed to complement each other, to enable services to share information to respond to the range of needs and risks facing children and families. The Schemes align in a number of ways, including:

broadly consistent information sharing entities and record keeping requirements

similar protections for professionals who share information in good faith and with reasonable care

prioritising children's safety and victim survivor's over any individual's privacy

Information can be shared:

under FVISS to assess and manage family violence risk, including to children

under CISS to promote the wellbeing or safety of a child

Information sharing entities should be mindful that sharing information in the context of family violence may pose particular and complex risks for children and other family members. When considering sharing to promote child wellbeing or safety, information sharing entities should be alert to whether family violence risk may be present. When sharing information in a family violence context, information sharing entities should therefore take all reasonable steps to plan for and maximise the immediate and ongoing safety of children and all family members at risk of family violence. Information sharing should occur in accordance with a relevant safety plan.

When sharing under one Scheme, information sharing entities should consider whether sharing under the other Scheme may also be beneficial. For example, when sharing to assess or manage family violence risk, if there are children in the family the information sharing entity should consider whether additional information should be shared with other information sharing entities for child wellbeing or safety purposes beyond the assessment and management of family violence risk.

2. No, Commonwealth agencies and wholly interstate organisations are not prescribed under the Schemes.

Where information sharing entities share or request information from interstate or Commonwealth organisations, the Schemes will not be relevant. When sharing cross-border, information sharing entities should continue to use existing permissions for sharing information as well as their current practices for working with agencies in the neighbouring state. Interstate or Commonwealth entities should respond to requests for information in accordance with the laws of their own jurisdiction.

3. The Schemes provide additional permissions for information sharing entities to share information with other information sharing entities for the purpose of family violence risk assessment and management or to promote the wellbeing or safety of a child or group of children, provided the relevant requirements are met.

4. Secrecy and confidentiality provisions continue to apply unless expressly overridden by the information sharing schemes. If another Act contains legal restrictions on the sharing of information and these provisions have not been expressly overridden under the Schemes, these restrictions will continue to apply to the sharing of that information.

5. Refer to MARAM for determining whether a family violence risk is serious.

6. The role of disability services in supporting the wellbeing and safety of children and families is recognised, however, neither the NDIS nor NDIA are prescribed as information sharing entities.

State provided and funded specialist forensic disability accommodation services are prescribed under the information sharing schemes. The Victorian Disability Worker Commission and the Disability Worker Registration Board of Victoria are also prescribed.

Updating policies to include the information sharing schemes and MARAM

A number of workforces have had central updates to their policies to reflect the introduction of the information sharing schemes and MARAM.

See the below information for these workforces.

1. Catholic schools should refer to their Diocese for guidance on policies and procedures.

2. Independent schools can adapt the guidance from , the and the which are available on the Department of Education's PROTECT website.

These resources provide information to support the implementation of the information sharing schemes by education providers.

3. The Department of Health and the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) have developed the following resources to support general practitioners to use the information sharing schemes.

Acronyms and glossary

Information Sharing and MARAM glossary

The Information Sharing and MARAM Glossary defines terms, acronyms and abbreviations commonly used in information sharing.

Alleged perpetrator

A person who is alleged to pose a risk of committing family violence. Information about alleged perpetrators can only be shared with Risk Assessment Entities (RAEs) for a family violence assessment purpose.

CISS

Child Information Sharing Scheme

The Child Information Sharing Scheme (CISS) allows authorised organisations and professionals working with children, young people and families to share information to promote a child's wellbeing or safety.

DE

Department of Education (after 1 January 2023)

DET

The former Department of Education and Training

DFFH

Department of Families, Fairness and Housing

DH

Department of Health

DHHS

The former Department of Health and Human Services

Excluded information

Excluded information is information that cannot be shared under the Schemes.

FSV

Family Safety Victoria

FVISS

Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme

The Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme (FVISS) allows authorised organisations to share information to assess and manage family violence risk.

ISE

Information sharing entity

A person or body, or class of person or body, prescribed to be an information sharing entity under the information sharing schemes.

Information sharing entities may also be referred to as 'prescribed entities' or 'prescribed organisations and services'.

MARAM

Family Violence Multi-Agency Risk Assessment and Management Framework

The Family Violence Multi-Agency Risk Assessment and Management Framework (MARAM) is a framework that guides services in assessing and managing the risk of family violence.

MARAM was previously known as the common risk assessment framework or 'CRAF'.

RAE

Risk Assessment Entity

An ISE prescribed under FVISS may also be prescribed as a Risk Assessment Entity (RAE).

All ISEs prescribed under FVISS can share information for a family violence assessment purpose with RAEs.

RAMP

Risk Assessment and Management Panel

A Risk Assessment and Management Panel (RAMP) is a formally convened meeting, held at a local level, of key agencies and organisations that contribute to the safety of women and children experiencing serious and imminent threat from family violence.

The reforms

The Child Information Sharing Scheme, the Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme and MARAM.

The Schemes

The Child Information Sharing Scheme and the Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme.

TRAM

Tools for Risk Assessment and Management

Tools for Risk Assessment and Management (TRAM) is the online system that hosts the MARAM risk assessment tools being used in the Orange Door and being piloted in several specialist family violence services.

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Frequently asked questions about information sharing and MARAM | Victorian Government

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This page contains a list of frequently asked questions about the Child Information Sharing Scheme (CISS), the Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme (FVISS) and MARAM. It also contains questions about related topics such as training. Note the 'Schemes' collectively refers to CISS and FVISS.

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This is a series of videos that MARAM have produced to give you information about the reforms framework. These may be useful to share with your teams. One of the organizational pillars discusses training for all educators.

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This is a series of videos that MARAM have produced to give you information about the reforms framework. These may be useful to share with your teams. One of the organizational pillars discusses training for all educators.

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Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

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Information Sharing and MARAM Enquiry Line 1800 549 646

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Email: CISandFVIS@education.vic.gov.au

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The Orange Door in Ovens Murray

1800 271 157

oma@orangedoor.vic.gov.au

www.orangedoor.vic.gov.au

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"family violence" "domestic violence" "domestic abuse" "gender equality" "sexual assault" "vic gov" "family safety victoria" victoria "lived experience" "vio...

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Family Safety Victoria is delivering on Victoria's family violence strategy & coordinating support for families to help them care for children & young people.

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Tip sheet on how to access the training.

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Tip sheet on how to access the training.

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Template for making or responding to a request or sharing information

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Template for making or responding to a request or sharing information

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Template for declining a request under CISS/FVISS

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Template for declining a request under CISS/FVISS

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/FVIS

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Three interrelated reforms have been introduced in Victoria that will be integral to reducing family violence and promoting child wellbeing or safety.