Child Protection Department

Ms SANDERSON (Adelaide) (14:55): My question is to the Minister for Education and Child Development. How many of the more than 360 full-time staff promised and announced by then minister Rankine on 11 June 2013 have been employed, and what is the net increase in the Families SA staff (DCP, as it is now called)?

The Hon. S.E. CLOSE (Port Adelaide—Minister for Education and Child Development, Minister for Higher Education and Skills) (14:55): Net increase from that point in time I will have to take on notice. As the member will be well aware, and has raised in questions previously, we are carrying vacancies in the department that I firmly hope and expect will become easier to fill now that we have the response to the Nyland commission. There is a department that is solely dedicated to child protection, with a chief executive who has an excellent reputation around Australia, and a carefully thought-out blueprint—from Margaret Nyland, of course, but also in the government response.

My expectation is that we will be in a much better position to attract good staff—experienced staff and maybe staff who have worked for us previously and wish to return—and that not only will we be filling the vacancies we have at present but we will also be able to fill the new positions that we have identified through this response—positions in a family scoping unit, positions in a new team dedicated to working with children on short-term orders which not only will assist those children but also free up investigative resources. Making sure that we continue to fill those positions is extremely important, and we fully expect that to occur as a result of this positive step today.