Page 3777 - Week 12 - Thursday, 25 November 2021
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supports to young people in care during the COVID-19 pandemic. This data is subject to change, including changes from future data cleansing. As at May 2020, the ACT reported five young people in care were turning 18 by 30 June 2020, and 19 young people in care were turning 18 between 1 July 2020 and 31 December 2020.
(4) Young people who turned 18 years old before 31 December 2020 will have worked closely with their case manager, either through Child and Youth Protection Services or ACT Together, to develop a Transition Plan. Any identified gaps in supports would have been considered as part of this planning process which starts when a young person is 15 years old. They also would have been eligible to receive ACT Government supports offered as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which are detailed further below.
(5) A Step Up for Our Kids Out of Home Care Strategy 2015-2020 established a commitment to extend the continuum of care subsidy payments for eligible care leavers up to the age of 21 years and access to after care services until a young person is 25 years old. The ACT developed targeted information for children and young people and carers, outlining the operation of out of home care services (including transitions from care) during the COVID-19 emergency.
The ACT Government recognised that young people in care who were turning 18 in 2020 and 2021 were likely to experience increased vulnerability as they work towards a transition to independence. In August 2020, the Government announced a $1.7 million Supporting Children, Young People and their Families Package targeted at young carers, foster and kinship carers and young people. The package included:
• one-off payments of $300 for each child and young person in foster and kinship care to support the wellbeing of young people and ease financial stress for carers whose employment or income have been affected during the COVID-19 pandemic
• an extended carer subsidy for young people in out of home care who turn 18 to support living expenses, housing costs or connect them with training and employment
• funding to support young carers to meet additional expenses, maintain wellbeing and support educational participation
• one-off grant payments to non-government service providers to assist with direct service delivery, brokerage and support for young people and their families to respond to increased demand for services.
(6) The ACT Government does not retain data on children and young people when they leave the out of home care system.
(7) There were 13 young people in out of home care who turned 18 years old between 1 January to 31 August 2021.
(8) Child and Youth Protection Services and ACT Together have worked together to identify and support young people as they transition from care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Young people transitioning from care will have worked with their case manager, to develop a Transition Plan to support their transition to adulthood. The Transition Plan would have included any additional provisions required to support the young person to transition from care during the pandemic period.
(9) The ACT Government is committed to modernising the Children and Young People Act 2008 (CYP Act), and the 2021-22 Budget allocated funding to this work. The
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