About Maoz
Maoz’s mission is to build the capacity of organisations to safeguard and protect Jewish children, both within and outside the Jewish community.
What we do
Leveraging a network of advisers with extensive expertise in the sector as well as
cultural understanding, we offer professional safeguarding services to Jewish organisations.
From schools and preschools to synagogues, youth groups, sporting bodies and
more, MAOZ supports regulatory compliance and promotes best practice when it
comes to our children’s safety.
Our Board
Dr Michelle Meyer
President
Malka Lawrence
Vice President
Naomi Layton
Treasurer
Paul Kessell
Secretary
Zoe Heinrichs
Board Member
Aviya Wiener
Youth Representative – Board Member
Dr Ann Wollner
Board Member
Michelle Zelig
Board Member
Britt Pencharz
Board Member
Our Jewish Principles
Maoz means a place of safety in Hebrew. The name was chosen to reflect our goal…
To create safe and respectful organisations for children and the vulnerable.
Maoz as a Jewish organisation, is underpinned by the following values:
(Kol Yisrael Arevim Zeh La-Zeh), and we as adults are responsible to protect children and reinforce in organisational missions that child safety is everyone’s responsibility.
Child safety is saving life, the highest priority (Pikuach Nefesh).
(Dina D’Malkhuta Dina) including laws pertaining to reporting child abuse to the authorities and laws for organisations to establish policies and procedures to protect children.
(Tzedek Tzedek Tordof) - we have a moral imperative to eradicate child abuse in the Jewish community.
(Tikun Olam) fostering the social change and community response necessary to eradicate child sexual abuse in the Jewish community.
How we work
Our work is focussed on compliance with safeguarding legislation, but we go
beyond, building capacity within organisations so that they are empowered to
develop and sustain a culture committed to child safety.
We mentor and focus on leadership within the Jewish community. Leaders are
the drivers of cultural change, with a responsibility to create an organisational
culture that understands and values safeguarding children and the vulnerable.
We assist organisations to tailor their policies and programs to an
organisation’s specific needs, risk factors, and build culturally specific policies
within the Jewish context.
We build in external checks to ensure impartiality, especially in cases
involving personal acquaintances or public figures. We engage with experts
outside of the Jewish community and remain open to constructive criticism.