Our Story

In 1985, PACT made a commitment to Protect All Children Today. While our focus areas and services have evolved since our beginning more than 35 years ago, our commitment to helping children, and victims and witnesses of all ages, is stronger than ever.

Our story begins during a child abuse seminar in 1985 during which the presenter called upon the audience to ‘make a pact to protect all children, today.’

Two detective sergeants, David Jefferies and Dugald MacMillan, took this message to heart. They approached Kay McGrath, the well-known TV presenter who was covering the seminar for her TV channel and together they decided to create a community-based organisation promoting child protection. PACT was officially formed in Kay’s house, as she, David and Dugald signed the paperwork to create an organisation called Protect All Children Today.

With PACT’s purpose being the promotion of child protection, other leading advocates for child safety and change in the legal sector including Annette Purcell and Michael Caffery joined the newly launched organisation.

Over the coming years, PACT was instrumental in helping change investigative processes, which included the taping of the initial police interview with child victims and the use of multi-disciplinary investigation techniques.

In 1990, PACT created and launched the first Child Protection Week campaign, with the aim of bringing abuse and neglect out of the shadows and putting child well-being on the national agenda. The event became so large it was handed over to a committee with representatives from leading organisations in the sector. National Child Protection Week is now recognised annually in September and continues to boost the well-being of all children in Australia.

In recent times, PACT focused on filling an important gap; supporting child victims and witnesses who have to give evidence in court. This has now expanded to include victims and witnesses of all ages who need support through the Queensland criminal justice system.

     

Discover more about PACT:

Our People

Meet PACT’s dedicated staff and Board of Directors

Our imPACT

See the imPACT we’re having on more than 1,800 children every year

Our Volunteers

Learn how our volunteer PACT Support Persons make an imPACT