About Us

FAQs

• We sponsor a child as a family. What name should we use to meet the increased privacy measures?

  Increased privacy and child protection measures mean you won't be able to sign off your letters using your surname.

  Instead of signing off your letters as, for example, "The Smith Family", please use your first names instead. While your letter template may have just the main contact’s first name, you’re welcome to sign-off your letters with the first names of all family members.

• What is my sponsored child’s surname?

  We are only able to share Compassion assisted children’s preferred names (which are usually their first name)—whether that’s on the website, in print material, or even with you, the sponsor. We’re not able to share their surname for child protection and privacy reasons.

  Every child in Compassion’s program is known, loved and connected to their local church community and Compassion child development centre. We want to help you as a sponsor get to know your sponsored child and build a lasting friendship.

  But we must also strive to meet the highest standards of child protection and ensure that your privacy—and your sponsored child’s—is as safe as it can be.

  That’s why some of the information about Compassion assisted children and their families is not publicly available. We’re only able to share their preferred name with you. And we will only share your first name with them. It’s a simple and effective way to give you both a higher level of protection.

• My sponsored child has started signing letters with a different name. Is this still my same sponsored child?

  Your sponsored child is still your sponsored child. From 2021 we have implemented a new child protection and privacy measure to remove the children's surnames from all published materials.

  As this new child protection measure came in, all of the children were asked to nominate their preferred name which they would have printed on their letters. It's possible that some of the children nominated a different name to the one that was previously shown on their letters, since they may prefer to use a nickname or other variation when on a first-name basis.

  This change is only about the identifying information used on your letters and other Compassion materials; it doesn’t affect your sponsorship in any other way.

• When is Compassion removing my sponsored child's surname from all materials?

  The process of changing to a first-name-only basis will commence in January 2021, but it will take some time to carry through into all Compassion materials.

  Letter templates will begin to change from the beginning of 2021, but it may be weeks before you see the change on the letters you receive from your sponsored child. This is because some centres and countries have a quantity of letter templates and other materials with full names on them already in stock; rather than waste them, we want to steward those resources well and use them before the change happens and the new letter templates come into play.

  If you have any questions about this change, you can find more information at compassion.com.au/be-informed/child-protection or call us on 1300 22 44 53.

• How do I know that my sponsored child is a real person?

  Every child registered with Compassion’s program is a child in need, known to the local workers at the child development centre and a part of the community. Local staff work hard to develop a strong relationship with every child and their family. They keep detailed records for all children registered, including information such as their academic performance and development, health progress, goals, interests and more. Staff from the national Compassion office visit child development centres regularly, review records and audit the centre’s accounts to ensure accountability.

  We encourage you to continue to build your friendship with your sponsored child. Write to them as much as you can, encourage them to write to you, ask how you can pray for them and ask them to pray for you. As your friendship grows, you’ll know they’re a real person who is benefitting greatly from your support.

  From 2021, new child protection and privacy measures mean that you will only see your sponsored child's preferred name on all the letters you receive. Be assured that your sponsored child is still the same child—it’s just that we won’t use to their surname anymore to better protect their privacy. We ask that you only use your first name in all your communications with them, so your own privacy is better protected as well.