House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2022-09-27 Daily Xml

Contents

Working with Children Checks

Mr TEAGUE (Heysen) (14:42): My question is to the Minister for Human Services. Is the minister aware that advice she provided to the house on 7 September may be inconsistent with the National Standards for Working with Children Checks? With your leave, sir, that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

Mr TEAGUE: As I have just indicated—and I will repeat it for the purposes of completeness—on 7 September, the minister said, and I quote:

In terms of working with children clearances, these are really necessary when people are being left alone with children in an isolated capacity. They're actually not essential for all workers who do all jobs just in the presence of children.

The National Standards for Working with Children Checks stipulate that, and I quote:

The supervised or unsupervised nature of the contact with children is irrelevant to determining whether a person is required to apply for a working with children check.

The Hon. N.F. COOK (Hurtle Vale—Minister for Human Services) (14:43): I go by the advice from the department. I am advised that not all people who are doing work or volunteering with children are required to get a working with children check.