❓ Question on Notice regarding funding, capacity, and accountability within the out-of-home care sector in Western Australia, specifically referencing the 'Out-of-Home Care: Strategic Directions in Western Australia 2015–2020' discussion paper.
AnsweredQoN 1143Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
CHILD
PROTECTION — OUT-OF-HOME CARE
1143. Hon STEPHEN DAWSON to the Minister
for Child Protection:
I refer to the ''Out-of-Home
Care: Strategic Directions in Western Australia 2015–2020''
discussion paper.
(1) How much
funding has been allocated to expanding the capacity of the out-of-home care
sector and who is responsible for implementing the changes?
(2) How many
community sector placements have been funded by the department and how many
have not been used?
(3) Was the
decision to increase funding for care placements to the community sector made
as a result of departmental budget constraints, or were other factors
considered?
(4) What
benchmarks will the department use to measure outcomes and accountability by
external care providers?
PROTECTION — OUT-OF-HOME CARE
1143. Hon STEPHEN DAWSON to the Minister
for Child Protection:
I refer to the ''Out-of-Home
Care: Strategic Directions in Western Australia 2015–2020''
discussion paper.
(1) How much
funding has been allocated to expanding the capacity of the out-of-home care
sector and who is responsible for implementing the changes?
(2) How many
community sector placements have been funded by the department and how many
have not been used?
(3) Was the
decision to increase funding for care placements to the community sector made
as a result of departmental budget constraints, or were other factors
considered?
(4) What
benchmarks will the department use to measure outcomes and accountability by
external care providers?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for some notice of the question.
(1) The
Department for Child Protection and Family Support has not made any decision
about funding to expand the capacity of the out-of-home care sector.
(2) The
department recurrently funds the community service sector to provide up to 608
placements for children in the care of the chief executive officer of the
department at any one time across the state. The number of recurrently funded
placements used at any one time changes on a daily basis. The number of
placements provided through individualised fee-for-service contracts also
changes frequently, depending on demand for these services.
(3) Please refer to (1).
(4) The
standards of all out-of-home care service providers are currently monitored
against the ''Better Care, Better Services'' standards for
children and young people in protection and care. Additional external oversight
mechanisms are also being considered as part of the out-of-home care reform
project.
(1) The
Department for Child Protection and Family Support has not made any decision
about funding to expand the capacity of the out-of-home care sector.
(2) The
department recurrently funds the community service sector to provide up to 608
placements for children in the care of the chief executive officer of the
department at any one time across the state. The number of recurrently funded
placements used at any one time changes on a daily basis. The number of
placements provided through individualised fee-for-service contracts also
changes frequently, depending on demand for these services.
(3) Please refer to (1).
(4) The
standards of all out-of-home care service providers are currently monitored
against the ''Better Care, Better Services'' standards for
children and young people in protection and care. Additional external oversight
mechanisms are also being considered as part of the out-of-home care reform
project.
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