Kia ora Welcome to Dilworth

Dilworth now.  - Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.

“Dilworth recognised the need for a specialist in health and safety and student safeguarding. I work across all three of our campuses, giving advice and guidance to senior leadership and the Board, as well as offering help and support to teachers and other members of staff.” - Stephen Ralph, Director of Health and Safety

Keeping students safe from harm is Dilworth’s highest priority, and the school continues to work incredibly hard to build a new culture from the ground up.

Dilworth employs a Director of Health and Safety and a Head of Safeguarding. The roles work together and have contributed significantly to developing and strengthening a culture where student welfare has become a cornerstone responsibility for everyone employed at the school.

Stephen Ralph, Director of Health and Safety - also known as “Safety Steve” - says his role was established in 2023. “Dilworth recognised the need for a specialist in health and safety and student safeguarding. I work across all three of our campuses, giving advice and guidance to senior leadership and the Board, as well as offering help and support to teachers and other members of staff.”

The other area of student safety where Dilworth has focused it’s efforts to create a new culture is in student safeguarding. Head of Safeguarding, Mattie Naseri, is tasked with one of its most critical roles - leading the school’s systems, processes, and wider culture of student safety and welfare.

Dilworth’s Child Wise accreditation in 2022 affirms the school has met the criteria to be a student-safe environment under the umbrella of the Australian Childhood Foundation. Accreditation included an independent review of the school, which came back with a range of recommendations - none of them optional. “It was a major piece of work” Mattie says. “We’ve implemented every one of the recommendations, but we’re always on a journey to get better. We all work to a philosophy of continuous improvement.”

The school also involves students in its decision-making, ensuring their voices are clearly heard. Mattie: “It’s critical our students know we are listening to them—the school is not about us just making the decisions and them following orders.”

Applications

A Dilworth scholarship can assist families to give their young man the education they know he deserves.

A scholarship to Dilworth is worth more than $50,000 per year and covers tuition, books, uniforms, sports fees and music tuition, school trips and camps, outdoor education, dedicated careers advisors and boarding (day school option available for Junior Campus). 

Dilworth offers a multitude of opportunities, a strong pastoral care system and quality teaching.

Commitment to Child Safety at Dilworth School

Dilworth cares deeply about the safety, welfare, and well-being of those in our school community. Today Dilworth has zero tolerance for abuse of any kind- safeguarding and wellbeing of students are in line with current and world-leading best practices. In September 2022 Dilworth was the first school in New Zealand to gain Child Wise Accreditation.

Child Wise is an Australian-based programme designed to assist organisations in embedding Child Wise Safeguarding Standards.

Dilworth is committed to a mindset of continuous awareness and improvement. Ten Australian National Child Safe Principles guide our school as we uphold an environment where student safety and wellbeing are intrinsic to our culture and remain at the centre of our thinking, values and actions.

Dilworth Response

The Dilworth Trust Board acknowledges the historical abuse that occurred at Dilworth School and is committed to fully, openly and honestly confronting the issue. That some students who attended Dilworth School suffered abuse during their time at Dilworth is completely unacceptable.

Dilworth Response oversees the Dilworth Trust Board’s commitment. 

To find out more about Dilworth Response, visit: Dilworth Response.