❓ Minister responds to a question about WA's child protection system, highlighting increased funding and praising community sector organisations. She criticises the opposition's policy on privatisation and funding for these services.
AnsweredQoN 903Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
DEPARTMENT
FOR CHILD PROTECTION AND FAMILY SUPPORT — CHILDREN IN CARE
903. Mrs G.J. GODFREY to
the Minister for Child Protection:
Can the minister please update the house on how Western
Australia's child protection system is meeting the needs of children in
care?
FOR CHILD PROTECTION AND FAMILY SUPPORT — CHILDREN IN CARE
903. Mrs G.J. GODFREY to
the Minister for Child Protection:
Can the minister please update the house on how Western
Australia's child protection system is meeting the needs of children in
care?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Belmont for her question. I think it
is very timely that that question was asked today after the Four Corners report last night, which, I
must say, was very distressing. I am sure that a lot of people who saw it felt
the same way. I just want to reassure the people of Western Australia, as
members would have noticed throughout that whole program, that Western
Australia was not mentioned once. It was not mentioned once because we do not
have the concerns in residential care that the other states'
departments have. Very clearly, we have worked very, very hard. I am very proud
of that fact. If I can go back, since 1997 I think there have been 40 reviews
into child protection around the country. Our big one was the Ford review in
2007. I have already spoken about how necessary that was. I am not going to go
there today.
We needed to do something and we certainly did. We have
significantly increased the funds available to child protection—an 88.6
per cent increase. We have increased full-time equivalents by 7.6 per cent,
which meant that 117 full-time caseworkers came on board as well, plus an
additional $56 million went into out-of-home care placements for children. That
money went to the community sector organisations that are doing an amazing job
in this state. We have very, very high standards. We have very, very high
contractual arrangements that need to be kept in place, and we do that. Our
partners in this are doing an outstanding job. I want to congratulate them for
the work they do in some very, very difficult circumstances. These are not
simple solutions of putting people into care. The residential homes in
particular have some children who have experienced great trauma. I will
highlight a couple. Parkerville Children and Youth Care is a wonderful
organisation; it is absolutely outstanding. Organisations such as Wanslea
Family Services, Anglicare WA and the Salvation Army are supporting this
government, and we are very proud of that. We are proud to stand beside those
organisations. I certainly welcome that opportunity. I visit many of them and
see the services they provide and the outstanding work they do. These children
need our support. They need extra support from the government because,
unfortunately, they do not get support from their homes.
Last week I formally opened a conference. We have a
conference in which we bring children who have been in care, or are about to go
out or have just gone out of care, to come back and talk with the state
government and with these organisations about what it was like going through care
and how we can do it better. Someone from Foyer Oxford was here. Some members
know of that organisation. A guy from England came out to this conference
because he had never heard of anything like it. We are working all the time to
get this right. We are very, very proud of that. What does bother me—it
really does really bother me, I have to say —
Mr P.B. Watson :
You said it three times.
Ms A.R. MITCHELL :
I just want to make sure that the member for Albany heard me. I want to refer
to the red book. Do members know of that red book? I have renamed it the ''motherhood
statements red book''.
Mr D.J. Kelly interjected.
Ms A.R. MITCHELL :
I am.
Ms R. Saffioti interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for West Swan, I call you to order for the first time.
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park!
Mr P. Papalia interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Warnbro, I call you to order for the second time. Minister, 30 seconds.
Ms A.R. MITCHELL :
The ''red book'' states —
WA Labor will ensure that public
services such as:
�
j. child protection,
are not further privatised, and where they have been,
they will be brought back into government control and operation in a
responsible manner. The opposition is going to take funding away from
Anglicare. It is going to take its funding away.
Ms R. Saffioti interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for West Swan.
Ms A.R. MITCHELL :
It is going to take funding away from Parkerville. It is going to take funding
away from all those non-government organisations, not because it cares about
children, but because of the union movement. The opposition must do what the
union movement wants. We care about the children, members opposite do not.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Thank
you. I am getting the wall of noise.
Ms A.R. MITCHELL :
My question—unfortunately the opposition is not listening, but I am
very concerned—is when the opposition is going to tell Anglicare,
Wanslea and the Salvation Army, that it is going to stop giving them the
funding.
is very timely that that question was asked today after the Four Corners report last night, which, I
must say, was very distressing. I am sure that a lot of people who saw it felt
the same way. I just want to reassure the people of Western Australia, as
members would have noticed throughout that whole program, that Western
Australia was not mentioned once. It was not mentioned once because we do not
have the concerns in residential care that the other states'
departments have. Very clearly, we have worked very, very hard. I am very proud
of that fact. If I can go back, since 1997 I think there have been 40 reviews
into child protection around the country. Our big one was the Ford review in
2007. I have already spoken about how necessary that was. I am not going to go
there today.
We needed to do something and we certainly did. We have
significantly increased the funds available to child protection—an 88.6
per cent increase. We have increased full-time equivalents by 7.6 per cent,
which meant that 117 full-time caseworkers came on board as well, plus an
additional $56 million went into out-of-home care placements for children. That
money went to the community sector organisations that are doing an amazing job
in this state. We have very, very high standards. We have very, very high
contractual arrangements that need to be kept in place, and we do that. Our
partners in this are doing an outstanding job. I want to congratulate them for
the work they do in some very, very difficult circumstances. These are not
simple solutions of putting people into care. The residential homes in
particular have some children who have experienced great trauma. I will
highlight a couple. Parkerville Children and Youth Care is a wonderful
organisation; it is absolutely outstanding. Organisations such as Wanslea
Family Services, Anglicare WA and the Salvation Army are supporting this
government, and we are very proud of that. We are proud to stand beside those
organisations. I certainly welcome that opportunity. I visit many of them and
see the services they provide and the outstanding work they do. These children
need our support. They need extra support from the government because,
unfortunately, they do not get support from their homes.
Last week I formally opened a conference. We have a
conference in which we bring children who have been in care, or are about to go
out or have just gone out of care, to come back and talk with the state
government and with these organisations about what it was like going through care
and how we can do it better. Someone from Foyer Oxford was here. Some members
know of that organisation. A guy from England came out to this conference
because he had never heard of anything like it. We are working all the time to
get this right. We are very, very proud of that. What does bother me—it
really does really bother me, I have to say —
Mr P.B. Watson :
You said it three times.
Ms A.R. MITCHELL :
I just want to make sure that the member for Albany heard me. I want to refer
to the red book. Do members know of that red book? I have renamed it the ''motherhood
statements red book''.
Mr D.J. Kelly interjected.
Ms A.R. MITCHELL :
I am.
Ms R. Saffioti interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for West Swan, I call you to order for the first time.
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park!
Mr P. Papalia interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Warnbro, I call you to order for the second time. Minister, 30 seconds.
Ms A.R. MITCHELL :
The ''red book'' states —
WA Labor will ensure that public
services such as:
�
j. child protection,
are not further privatised, and where they have been,
they will be brought back into government control and operation in a
responsible manner. The opposition is going to take funding away from
Anglicare. It is going to take its funding away.
Ms R. Saffioti interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for West Swan.
Ms A.R. MITCHELL :
It is going to take funding away from Parkerville. It is going to take funding
away from all those non-government organisations, not because it cares about
children, but because of the union movement. The opposition must do what the
union movement wants. We care about the children, members opposite do not.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Thank
you. I am getting the wall of noise.
Ms A.R. MITCHELL :
My question—unfortunately the opposition is not listening, but I am
very concerned—is when the opposition is going to tell Anglicare,
Wanslea and the Salvation Army, that it is going to stop giving them the
funding.
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