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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2024-08-29 Daily Xml
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Child Protection

Mr TEAGUE (Heysen) (14:18): My question again is to the Minister for Child Protection. What is the total number of police investigations into children in the care of the Department for Child Protection at the time of their offending since May 2022?

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD (Reynell—Minister for Child Protection, Minister for Women and the Prevention of Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing) (14:19): I think I have already really clearly answered this question, that I am not going to elucidate in any way about matters that could compromise any investigations or court matters relating to children and young people who are engaged with the child protection and family support system. Two things I will say in addition to making that very clear, is that I am absolutely notified—

The Hon. D.G. Pisoni interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Unley! That is your first warning.

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: What I will make very clear is that unlike when those opposite were in government, I have absolutely transformed the way that I as minister am kept informed about particular matters that arise for particular children and young people in care. With that information, as well as being notified about particular matters that may arise, I make it my business to drive change that improves our system's responses to those children and young people.

The third thing I would say is that with our $450 million additional investment into the child protection and family support system, which clearly the member for Heysen does not support, we have improved care for those children and young people who live in residential care. We have put on more staff, we have more carers, and we have utterly slowed the growth of children and young people coming into care, utilising that investment and utilising the programs that we have put in place—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Colton! Member for Unley!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: —to make a difference. So we have invested in family group conferencing, we have invested in a peak body for Aboriginal children and young people—for children and young people, an Aboriginal peak body called Wakwakurna Kanyini. We have invested into that really important peak body, we have increased carer payments, we have included an additional respite payment, we have invested in interventions through and across government, so $35 million into intensive family support services that comes through the Department for Human Services.

The list of those investments and strategies go on and they are really good investments and really good strategies because what we are seeing is a slowing in the growth of the numbers of children in care from a high of 9 per cent when those opposite were in government, down to now, today, 0.2 per cent—so from 9 per cent to 0.2 per cent. We have more staff, more carers in the system and we are beginning to see that growth slow.

We are beginning to see extraordinary results from the investments that we have made. From our $13.4 million, and growing, investment, a new investment in family group conferencing, 90 per cent of families who engage in a family group conference successfully continue to care for children after that family group conferencing. We have invested also in reunification, which is showing extraordinary signs of improvement for those families.

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