❓ Mr. Staltari questions the Minister about carer households without placements. The Minister defends the system, emphasising the human element and support for carers.
AnsweredQoN 435Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Child protection—Carer households
435. Mr Liam Staltari to
the Minister for Child Protection:
I note that this
week is National Child Protection Week and refer to answers provided prior to the
Legislative Council's child protection budget estimates, which reveal that
there were 175 carer households approved for long-term placements that did not
have a child placed with them for a single day in the last financial year.
(1) How many children are in the care of the
state?
(2) Are any of those children waiting for a long-term
care placement?
(3) How many of those children are currently
recorded as missing?
Ms Sabine Winton interjected.
The Speaker: Minister, it is not your question.
Several members
interjected.
The Speaker: Members!
Mr Liam Staltari interjected.
The Speaker: Member for Carine, you have asked the
question. You will allow the minister to respond.
435. Mr Liam Staltari to
the Minister for Child Protection:
I note that this
week is National Child Protection Week and refer to answers provided prior to the
Legislative Council's child protection budget estimates, which reveal that
there were 175 carer households approved for long-term placements that did not
have a child placed with them for a single day in the last financial year.
(1) How many children are in the care of the
state?
(2) Are any of those children waiting for a long-term
care placement?
(3) How many of those children are currently
recorded as missing?
Ms Sabine Winton interjected.
The Speaker: Minister, it is not your question.
Several members
interjected.
The Speaker: Members!
Mr Liam Staltari interjected.
The Speaker: Member for Carine, you have asked the
question. You will allow the minister to respond.
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(3) I would ask the member for Carine to
listen this time. He asked me this question before in estimates and he knows
full well, probably more than anyone in this house, that I have a very intimate
knowledge of how the child protection system works as I have been part of a
foster family. My family fostered children when I was a child and we had many
foster siblings come through our house. As I said to the member in estimates,
there are many reasons why families may be registered but not currently have a
child. Families are just that—they are families. They are not assets. They
are not beds. They are not rooms. They are people. Those people may have many
different reasons why they do not currently have a child with them. It could be
that they are dealing with their own circumstances. They could be caring for a
loved one, for example. They may be going through something of their own so they
cannot have a child with them at the time. Does that mean that just because they
cannot have a child with them at this point in time they cannot be a foster
parent in the system? No, it does not. We do not treat these amazing people who
open up their hearts and their homes like they are assets, which is what the
member is referring to. He is asking why, if these people are in the system, they
do not have children with them. It is because they are people, and the system
needs to be responsive to these amazing people who open up their houses and
their hearts and say, "I will at some point be able to take a foster
child." We do not demand that they take a child just because we have need. What we do instead is foster
care recruitment. We open it up and dispel the myths around foster care and
say, "Actually, you're in a same-sex relationship? You can be a foster
carer. You work full-time? You can be a foster carer. You don't have a stay-at-home
parent? You can be a foster carer." What we do is that we support those
amazing people who put up their hands and say "I will be a person that
looks after the most vulnerable people in our electorate. I will not be a
number and I will not be an asset; I will be a person in this system."
To the member's question, yes,
we have many wonderful people who currently are registered but, for whatever
reason, cannot take a child. Do we demonise them? No, we support them. What the
member is implying is disrespectful to them and shameful.
The Speaker: Members, that concludes question time.
listen this time. He asked me this question before in estimates and he knows
full well, probably more than anyone in this house, that I have a very intimate
knowledge of how the child protection system works as I have been part of a
foster family. My family fostered children when I was a child and we had many
foster siblings come through our house. As I said to the member in estimates,
there are many reasons why families may be registered but not currently have a
child. Families are just that—they are families. They are not assets. They
are not beds. They are not rooms. They are people. Those people may have many
different reasons why they do not currently have a child with them. It could be
that they are dealing with their own circumstances. They could be caring for a
loved one, for example. They may be going through something of their own so they
cannot have a child with them at the time. Does that mean that just because they
cannot have a child with them at this point in time they cannot be a foster
parent in the system? No, it does not. We do not treat these amazing people who
open up their hearts and their homes like they are assets, which is what the
member is referring to. He is asking why, if these people are in the system, they
do not have children with them. It is because they are people, and the system
needs to be responsive to these amazing people who open up their houses and
their hearts and say, "I will at some point be able to take a foster
child." We do not demand that they take a child just because we have need. What we do instead is foster
care recruitment. We open it up and dispel the myths around foster care and
say, "Actually, you're in a same-sex relationship? You can be a foster
carer. You work full-time? You can be a foster carer. You don't have a stay-at-home
parent? You can be a foster carer." What we do is that we support those
amazing people who put up their hands and say "I will be a person that
looks after the most vulnerable people in our electorate. I will not be a
number and I will not be an asset; I will be a person in this system."
To the member's question, yes,
we have many wonderful people who currently are registered but, for whatever
reason, cannot take a child. Do we demonise them? No, we support them. What the
member is implying is disrespectful to them and shameful.
The Speaker: Members, that concludes question time.
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