Page 2569 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 5 June 2012
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front-line workers. We want to ensure that there is going to be proper supervision and there is going to be the opportunity for professional development and training. These things are going to make a real difference to the way they do their work and, therefore, a real difference to the children that come into the out-of-home care system.
We also need to have a greater focus on support for carers and families and also the voice of children. This is incredibly important. The Children and Young People Act really puts children at the heart of everything. We need to see that children’s wishes and opinions are taken into account. We need to see a respectful relationship from the directorate to carers and to family because, at the end of the day, this is about improving our systems. We need to see greater early intervention when a family comes on the radar. We need to look at the strengths of the family, where the family needs to be strengthened and what we can put in place to help. We know that it is better, if possible, to strengthen the family and to keep children in the family environment.
These things are going to have to be put in place. We need to see real change in the way that things operate. I know that there has been a new senior position—someone who has extensive experience in this area. I would like to see strong leadership. I would like to see all levels of the department committed to making these changes. Where we are going to be able to see this is in the interim reports, the milestone reports, that will be coming out. Some things have been put in place already. We have seen the reception centre put in place. We have seen additional foster placements put in place as well. But through these interim reports, these milestone reports or reviews, we need to see that things are moving along. I wait with interest to see the Auditor-General’s report that will be coming down in the next few months. I would think that the Auditor-General is looking at things like reports and the systems that are in place to take reports.
Again, the Public Advocate goes to this area and says that we have the chip system and paper-based systems and that record keeping needs to improve. We need to get a handle on this one. I have been in this area for many years. I know how many millions of dollars have been poured into the chip system, yet here in 2012 there are still obviously real issues with that system and the way that it takes on information. The Public Advocate talked about chips, saying the system was difficult to navigate and did not provide a streamlined overview of the casework or information recorded and that it may be better to have some sort of case management system in place.
This is an area of work that needs to be done. Of course, the front-line work is important, but it needs to be backed up with good records. Remember also that children who go through the system will be coming back in later years, in their adult years, and they will want to know their history. It is important that we have accurate records. It is also important that we have accurate records that show that good consideration has been put into decisions, particularly decisions to remove children from their families. I move the amendment circulated in my name:
Omit all words after “notes”, substitute:
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