Effective primary supervisors

An effective primary supervisor (adult in charge of supervising the child with harmful sexual behaviours) needs to have the following characteristics:

• An awareness of the history of harmful sexual behaviours by the child.
• An ability to acknowledge the impact of the sexual abuse on the child and hold the child with harmful sexual behaviours accountable for the abuse without shaming them.
• An ability to make sure the child with harmful sexual behaviours is not in a situation where they are able to sexually abuse the child again (safety plan).
• An ability to closely supervise the child with harmful sexual behaviours around any other children and comply with any other safety plan requirements.
• An ability to identify manipulative, coercive and opportunistic behaviours and the impact of this behaviour on the child.
• An awareness of court orders that affect the child with harmful sexual behaviours.
• An ability to notice any change of behaviour or emotional distress in the child who was sexually abused and the child with harmful sexual behaviours.
• Be a person who the child who was sexually abused nominates as being a safe and appropriate person whom they can trust.