The Microsoft outage highlights the need to maintain safeguarding reporting and responses when email, Teams or shared documents are unavailable.
Churches and organisations working with Kooyoora should use the following guidance to keep concerns moving and maintain protective arrangements.
1. Respond to immediate safety needs
If someone is in immediate danger, call 000 in Australia or 111 in New Zealand. Take appropriate steps to protect the person. Do not wait for digital systems to return before acting.
2. Use an alternative reporting pathway
If you cannot access your usual reporting system, contact your designated safeguarding person by telephone.
To raise a concern with Kooyoora, telephone:
• Australia: 1800 135 246
• New Zealand: 0800 769 004
Kooyoora’s published office hours are Monday to Friday, 9 am–5 pm. Do not assume an immediate response outside these hours. If urgent protective action is needed, contact the relevant emergency service, police or child protection authority.
3. Confirm that your concern has been received
If you have already emailed or sent a Teams message about a concern requiring prompt attention, follow up by telephone. Explain the immediate risks and ask who will take responsibility for the next steps.
A sent message does not confirm that someone has read it or acted on it.
4. Maintain existing protective arrangements
Continue agreed supervision, contact restrictions and other safety measures. If a safety plan is inaccessible, contact the person responsible for it to confirm the arrangements. Do not guess at its requirements.
5. Make a secure temporary record
Use an approved offline method to record:
• What happened, when and where.
• Who may be at risk and their immediate safety needs.
• What was said, using the person’s own words where possible.
• Actions taken, people contacted and agreed follow-up.
Date the record and keep it secure. Avoid using personal email, informal group chats or unapproved storage for sensitive information. Delete as soon as reasonable.
6. Continue required external reporting
An outage does not remove reporting responsibilities. Use an available official pathway to make any required report to police, child protection or a regulator. Reporting internally or to Kooyoora does not replace these obligations.
7. Check outstanding concerns when systems return
Designate someone to review delayed messages, transfer temporary records into the approved system and confirm that each concern has a responsible person and documented next steps. Preserve the original reporting and action dates.
For leaders: Make sure staff and volunteers know the alternative reporting arrangements, who is available to respond and how urgent concerns will be escalated.
Do not delay raising a safeguarding concern because the usual technology is unavailable.