❓ Hon Maryka Groenewald asks about the number of children in foster care in WA, disaggregated by length of time in care and number of different homes. The Department of Communities provides data on children in care as of 31 August 2025, broken down by these categories.
AnsweredQoN 705Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to children in foster care in Western Australia, and I ask, for the period between 1 January 2023 and 31 August 2025, please provide, in tabular form, the number of children in foster care, disaggregated by:(a) the length of time spent in care, namely:(i) less than 30 days;(ii) 30 days to less than 6 months;(iii) 6 months to less than 1 year;(iv) 1 year to less than 2 years;(v) 2 years to less than 5 years; and(vi) 5 years or more; and(b) the number of different homes in which the child was placed, namely:(i) one home;(ii) two homes;(iii) three homes;(iv) four homes; and(v) five or more homes?
I refer to children in foster care in Western Australia, and I ask, for the period between 1 January 2023 and 31 August 2025, please provide, in tabular form, the number of children in foster care, disaggregated by:
(a) the length of time spent in care, namely:
(i) less than 30 days;
(ii) 30 days to less than 6 months;
(iii) 6 months to less than 1 year;
(iv) 1 year to less than 2 years;
(v) 2 years to less than 5 years; and
(vi) 5 years or more; and
(b) the number of different homes in which the child was placed, namely:
(i) one home;
(ii) two homes;
(iii) three homes;
(iv) four homes; and
(v) five or more homes?
I refer to children in foster care in Western Australia, and I ask, for the period between 1 January 2023 and 31 August 2025, please provide, in tabular form, the number of children in foster care, disaggregated by:
(a) the length of time spent in care, namely:
(i) less than 30 days;
(ii) 30 days to less than 6 months;
(iii) 6 months to less than 1 year;
(iv) 1 year to less than 2 years;
(v) 2 years to less than 5 years; and
(vi) 5 years or more; and
(b) the number of different homes in which the child was placed, namely:
(i) one home;
(ii) two homes;
(iii) three homes;
(iv) four homes; and
(v) five or more homes?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
18 November 2025
Responded by
Minister for Agriculture and Food representing the Minister for Child Protection
Response time
8 days
The Department of Communities advises:
(a)
(i – vi) The following table shows the 5,279 children in care on 31 August 2025.
Total Less than 30 days 48 30 days to less than 6 months 281 6 months to less than 1 year 345 1 year to less than 2 years 698 2 years to less than 5 years 1234 5 or more years 2673 Total 5279
Total
Less than 30 days
48
30 days to less than 6 months
281
6 months to less than 1 year
345
1 year to less than 2 years
698
2 years to less than 5 years
1234
5 or more years
2673
Total
5279
(b)
(i – v) Of the 5,279 children in care on 31 August 2025, there have been 4,132 children who have been in care for the whole period between 1 January 2023 and 31 August 2025. The following table shows these children by the number of distinct care arrangements over this period.
Total One Distinct Care Arrangement 2097 Two Distinct Care Arrangements 739 Three Distinct Care Arrangements 406 Four Distinct Care Arrangements 315 Five or more Distinct Care Arrangements 575 Total number of children in care for the whole period between 1 January 2023 to 31 August 2025 4132
Total
One Distinct Care Arrangement
2097
Two Distinct Care Arrangements
739
Three Distinct Care Arrangements
406
Four Distinct Care Arrangements
315
Five or more Distinct Care Arrangements
575
Total number of children in care for the whole period between 1 January 2023 to 31 August 2025
4132
(a)
(i – vi) The following table shows the 5,279 children in care on 31 August 2025.
Total Less than 30 days 48 30 days to less than 6 months 281 6 months to less than 1 year 345 1 year to less than 2 years 698 2 years to less than 5 years 1234 5 or more years 2673 Total 5279
Total
Less than 30 days
48
30 days to less than 6 months
281
6 months to less than 1 year
345
1 year to less than 2 years
698
2 years to less than 5 years
1234
5 or more years
2673
Total
5279
(b)
(i – v) Of the 5,279 children in care on 31 August 2025, there have been 4,132 children who have been in care for the whole period between 1 January 2023 and 31 August 2025. The following table shows these children by the number of distinct care arrangements over this period.
Total One Distinct Care Arrangement 2097 Two Distinct Care Arrangements 739 Three Distinct Care Arrangements 406 Four Distinct Care Arrangements 315 Five or more Distinct Care Arrangements 575 Total number of children in care for the whole period between 1 January 2023 to 31 August 2025 4132
Total
One Distinct Care Arrangement
2097
Two Distinct Care Arrangements
739
Three Distinct Care Arrangements
406
Four Distinct Care Arrangements
315
Five or more Distinct Care Arrangements
575
Total number of children in care for the whole period between 1 January 2023 to 31 August 2025
4132
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.