Child protection reforms needed to put children and families first

Through our work over many years representing parents and children involved with Child Protection, we have seen all too often the system fail to effectively support families and deliver good outcomes for kids.

Despite an unprecedented injection of almost $3 billion by the Victorian Government in recent years, headlines continue about the number of unallocated cases, the unsustainable workloads faced by child protection workers – particularly those working regionally and poor support for kids in state care.

Investing more funding into existing child protection approaches alone won’t fix the system’s flaws.

We have identified five critical reforms to improve the system, prioritise keeping families together and ensure that parents are given appropriate support to keep children safe.

Our Associate Director, Child Protection, Elicia Savvas, said that key to putting families first is addressing the conflicting roles played by child protection workers.

They are responsible for ensuring families get the support they need, yet also have the power to remove children from their parents’ care.

‘How can a parent say they need help to a person who has the power to remove their child?’, Elicia said.

‘Parents often tell us that it feels like they’re under surveillance but are not listened to or offered the help they need by Child Protection.’

This issue is not new - the Victorian Law Reform Commission first recommended separating the support and investigation/prosecution roles of Child Protection in a 2010 report, as did the Protecting Victoria’s Vulnerable Children Inquiry in 2012.

More independent support for families

We know through our work that engaging with families earlier, supporting them to identify the help they need and to access services helps to prevent issues from escalating.

Our non-legal advocacy service Independent Family Advocacy and Support (IFAS) has assisted hundreds of families since it was introduced as a pilot program in 2018.

Families told us that it was hugely beneficial to have an independent advocate help them navigate the complex child protection system during very distressing times.

A 2021 evaluation of IFAS found it diverted approximately 20 per cent of clients away from court.

Statewide expansion of IFAS would help ensure families could access independent support to engage with Child Protection and be able to effectively advocate for their children’s needs.

The role of the Children’s Court

We are concerned about the erosion of the Children’s Court oversight role since changes to the legislation in 2016 restricted the court’s decision-making powers.

The introduction of a time limit on reunification means that Child Protection makes all decisions for a child once a two-year period expires, if the child cannot return home and no permanent carer is available.

This ‘ticking clock’ puts many families in an impossible situation as child protection workforce issues and waiting lists for services mean they often face huge barriers getting the support they need in time to reunify with their children.

Given the seriousness of child removal and child protection matters generally, we believe there is a need for specialist magistrates across Victoria and a dedicated Children’s Court Act.

This would help to ensure continuous, high-quality decision-making is available for all Victorian families, regardless of where they live.

Our five key asks

1. separate the support and investigation/prosecution functions of Child Protection, as recommended by the VLRC
2. ensure improved access to early, independent support and advocacy like VLA’s IFAS service, to help families navigate the system and resolve issues quickly
3. reinstate the Children’s Court’s ability to make decisions in the best interests of a child without time-limits on reunification
4. introduce independent oversight of children in care to ensure safety concerns are reported and addressed
5. create a statewide Children’s Court and dedicated legislation for the court.

All children have the right to feel safe, cared for and to live with their family wherever possible.

We will continue to advocate for necessary changes to make our child protection system the fair and accountable safety net Victorian families deserve.

More information

Read more about IFAS.