Page 1594 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 10 May 2017
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
concerning a child can be reviewed by a tribunal. In Queensland both the placement of a child and a refusal to review a decision in a case plan can be reviewed by a tribunal. In Western Australia care plan decisions can be reviewed first by the CEO and subsequent decisions can be reviewed by a tribunal. In South Australia care orders which are made by the court can be reviewed by application to the court. Decisions made by the chief executive count as decisions made under the Youth Court Act and the act itself provides that care and protection orders can be appealed to the Supreme Court.
In Tasmania family group conferences that enable review of arrangements for care and protection of a child under an order must be convened if requested by the child or any two or more members of the child’s family. In the Northern Territory a party can apply for variation, revocation or revocation and replacement of a care and protection order. Decisions made by the chief executive count as decisions made under the relevant act and any order or decisions can be appealed to the Supreme Court.
In the ACT there is simply no pathway to external review. I do not wish to be misunderstood on this point, however. The matter before us today is not simply about being out of step with all other Australian states and territories, although the fact that the ACT has been left behind by all other jurisdictions, despite at least 13 years of recommendations to the contrary, should certainly concern us. External review of decisions relating to a child’s placement or care plan is about two very important things, the first of which is the quality of such decisions. As the Vardon report noted:
Good governance in child protection is about establishing a rigorous safety system for children and young people at risk. The system comprises statutory accountability, internal controls and record keeping, and external scrutiny.
The relationship between external review of decisions relating to placement and care plans and the quality of those decisions was likewise expressed to the Glanfield board of inquiry by the former Children and Young People Commissioner. I quote:
I consider that the availability of administrative review of such key decisions would improve accountability for decisions that have a significant impact on the lives of children and young people, and their families and carers and would promote high quality evidence-based decision-making by CPS [now CYPS].
Without access to external review of decisions made by CYPS or the Director-General of CSD, the territory’s families have no formal mechanism by which to raise concerns, resolve grievances or find assurance that these decisions truly are in the best interest of their children.
This leads to the second reason why scrutiny of such decisions is so important. Lack of external review naturally leads to suspicion and frustration, and, in the unfortunate event when something goes seriously wrong with a child in the territory’s care and protection, it can lead, quite understandably, to an unquenchable rage or grief that no-one listened when concerns were raised.
Tragically, the very best policies and procedures will never keep every single child safe 100 per cent of the time, but the right policies and procedures can certainly
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video