Trusted eSafety Provider Program FAQs

Trusted eSafety Providers must have appropriate qualifications and experience and demonstrate that their programs are evidence-based and aligned to the Australian Curriculum.

The Trusted eSafety Provider Program forms a key part of eSafety’s national leadership role in online safety education.

Trusted eSafety Providers are approved by the eSafety Commissioner to deliver online safety education to Australian schools, including primary/secondary students, teachers and/or parents.
 
Some Trusted eSafety Providers also offer online education programs tailored for other audiences such as corporate, sporting or community organisations.

Their role is to deliver high quality online safety education programs.

Search for a Trusted eSafety Provider by ‘Target Audience’ here.

Trusted eSafety Providers offer a wide range of online safety education programs. Most offer presentations and workshops (face-to-face and/or online), while others use theatrical performance, online learning programs and other delivery methods. They provide one-off programs through to in-depth programs that may run over the course of a school year.

In each program, Trusted eSafety Providers must cover cyberbullying and include information about the role of the eSafety Commissioner and eSafety’s cyberbullying complaint handling function.

Trusted eSafety Providers have a wealth of experience, and may also focus on other online issues, such as privacy and personal information, respectful online relationships, new apps and emerging online issues. Some Trusted eSafety Providers offer tailored programs for different school contexts.

Search for a Trusted eSafety Provider by ‘Delivery method’ or ‘Topics covered’ here.

While online safety should ideally be embedded across the curriculum, schools often find it helpful to engage a specialist provider to complement their online safety curriculum.

A Trusted eSafety Provider can provide current, accurate advice about evolving technologies and trends. They can also give advice on how students, parents and teachers can protect themselves and others from online risks, and what to do when they have a problem.  

Trusted eSafety Providers may also offer a different perspective on certain topics, deliver the online safety message a different way, or provide specialist advice and assistance to schools, drawing on diverse backgrounds in education, psychology/counselling, law enforcement and youth work.

Schools can look for a Trusted eSafety Provider that meets their particular needs here.

Trusted eSafety Providers have demonstrated they can deliver quality online safety education programs to Australian schools. This includes having appropriate qualifications and experience and delivering programs that are evidencebased and aligned to the Australian Curriculum.

All Trusted eSafety Providers hold appropriate insurance cover and must comply with relevant safeguards for working with children.

To maintain their endorsement, Trusted eSafety Providers are required to participate in an eSafety-led ‘community of practice’ to share new research, trends and best practice in online safety education. They must also demonstrate that they are undertaking their own professional development, program evaluation and improvement as well as signing up to a Code of Conduct.

No, the eSafety Commissioner (eSafety) only endorses programs or content that is directly related to online safety education. Some Trusted eSafety Providers deliver other programs and content that are not directly related to online safety – these are not in any way endorsed by eSafety.

Similarly, eSafety does not in any way endorse the partners or sponsors of Trusted eSafety Providers.

The role of the eSafety Commissioner (eSafety) is to provide national leadership in the development and implementation of best practice online safety education. This means setting quality standards, providing best practice guidance, helping build capacity in schools, and delivering services and resources to meet identified needs.
 
We provide a range of supports to school communities across Australia including:

• the Toolkit for Schools which provides nationally consistent guidance for schools to create safer online environments
• professional learning webinars for educators and other professionals
• a range of classroom resources and parent resources
• virtual classrooms to primary schools for key events such as Safer Internet Day, and
• complaint handling for cyberbullying and image-based abuse.

Sign up to our newsletter, follow us on Twitter and Facebook, and read our latest blogposts for updates.

Yes, many Trusted eSafety Providers offer online services. Look for one here.

For more information about COVID-19, the eSafety Commissioner has released a range of tips and blogs about how to stay safe online during the pandemic. More information is available here. You can also read the eSafety Commissioner’s open letter to Australia’s school principals and teachers.

The eSafety Commissioner does not provide funding to schools under the Trusted eSafety Provider Program. You may wish to contact your state, territory or sector education authority to find out if funding is available for this purpose.

If you have any further questions about the Trusted eSafety Provider Program, please contact us at trustedproviders@esafety.gov.au.

Any individual or organisation delivering high quality online safety education to schools can become a Trusted eSafety Provider provided they meet all mandatory requirements.

Our current Trusted eSafety Providers are from a range of backgrounds and include soletraders, small-medium enterprises, corporations, non-government organisations and registered charities.

The Trusted eSafety Providers Program encourages and supports providers to evaluate and enhance their online safety education programs to align with evidence-based, best practice approaches.

Trusted eSafety Providers have an ongoing relationship with the eSafety Commissioner (eSafety), built around a collaborative ‘community of practice’ through which we share new research, trends and practices in online safety education and support continuous improvement.

Display of the Trusted eSafety Provider logo will give schools and other potential clients confidence that the provider has met eSafety’s standards and is able to deliver quality online safety education. eSafety encourages schools to (wherever possible) look for a Trusted eSafety Providers through our website, social media and stakeholder network.

The eSafety Commissioner does not provide funding to Trusted eSafety Providers under this program.

No, the eSafety Commissioner (eSafety) only endorses programs or content that is directly related to online safety education. Some Trusted eSafety Providers do deliver other programs and content that are not directly related to online safety education – these are not in any way endorsed by eSafety.

Similarly, eSafety does not in any way endorse the partners or sponsors of Trusted eSafety Providers.

No, the process is rigorous. To become a Trusted eSafety Provider, applicants must demonstrate their suitability to be working with school students, teachers and parents, and ability to deliver quality online safety education. This includes:

• minimum levels of insurance coverage, Working with Children Checks and awareness and understanding of child safety and protection frameworks
• demonstrated capability to deliver online safety programs in Australian schools based on criteria such as presenter qualifications, experience and school-based referees, and
• the capacity to deliver program content that is appropriate for Australian schools, for example, that it is research-based and aligned to the Australian Curriculum.

Importantly, the assessment process includes obtaining references from schools or other organisations that have recently used the applicant’s service.

Trusted eSafety Providers are required to meet several ongoing requirements to maintain their endorsement including:

• participating in an eSafety-led community of practice to support continuous improvement and facilitate sharing of new research, trends and practices in online safety education
• adhering to a code of conduct, and
• submitting updated information annually (e.g. professional development, outcomes of program evaluation, numbers of schools visited or reached).

Schools are encouraged to provide feedback to the eSafety Commissioner (eSafety) on their experiences with Trusted eSafety Providers.