Page 3107 - Week 10 - Thursday, 15 August 2013
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care and protection of our most vulnerable appears to be finally getting some increased attention from this government, but were these steps taken by a government concerned by the number of issues faced within this sector? No, instead it is again just a reactionary matter in response to the scathing annual report from the Public Advocate of the ACT.
We acknowledge that projects have been instigated to deal with a number of issues and concerns highlighted in the report, and the department is trying to address some of its downfalls. But much more can be done. The milestone review panel was implemented in 2012 as part of the government’s response to the Public Advocate’s stage 2 report. This panel is responsible for monitoring the progress of the Office for Children, Youth and Family Support against the actions outlined in this government's response to the Public Advocate’s review and is to report on a quarterly basis for the next 12 months.
Whilst it should be recognised that this panel is pleased with the progress of projects being undertaken to refresh the service culture of the Office for Children, Youth and Family Support and that the completion rate for projects is over 50 per cent, one project, the legislative review, is running significantly behind schedule. The milestone review panel’s third quarter report issued in April this year reveals that it still has concerns about the availability of resources to adequately implement this schedule. As part of the summary of findings, that report indicated:
Given ever-increasing demands on services, continued difficulties in staff attraction and retention, and Budget constraints, the Panel is of the view that the Directorate will find it very difficult to complete its implementation of the PA2 recommendations in a timely manner.
Where does this leave the children and families involved? The Auditor-General’s report published in March 2013 also reported as part of its findings:
The Director General, Community Services Directorate, has statutory parental responsibility for children and young people in out-of-home care. There were 573 children and young people in care on the 18 November 2012. The Director General cannot rely on the Directorate’s own system to provide accurate information to be able to answer the question for all those in care; Where are they (including during school hours)?
In response to this, as part of the budget, the government has allocated $250,000 over the next two years for an upgrade and feasibility study for the replacement of the children and young people system. The system that provides information on the whereabouts of those that are vulnerable and have some form of care and protection order on them is only now receiving an upgrade to the system as well as a feasibility study. For this system, which is failing its staff and failing those it is meant to protect, this should have been done long ago.
It should be noted that whilst the directorate and the minister have taken steps to address some of the critical areas of both the Auditor-General’s report and the Public Advocate’s annual report through the implementation of a milestone review panel, the terms of reference for the panel, in their own words, stated in their second quarter report:
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