❓ The WA Parliament Question on Notice 1231 requests data on children in foster care, specifically length of time in care and number of placements between September and December 2025. The answer provides the requested data in tabular form.
AnsweredQoN 1231Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to children in foster care in Western Australia, and I ask, for the period between 1 September 2025 and 31 December 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
14 April 2026
Responded by
Minister for Agriculture and Food representing the Minister for Child Protection
Response time
8 days
(a)
(i – vi)
The following table shows the length of care arrangement for the 5,208 children in care on 31 December 2025.
Length of Time in Care
Total
Less than 30 days
55
30 days to less than 6 months
266
6 months to less than 1 year
306
1 year to less than 2 years
673
2 years to less than 5 years
1,276
5 or more years
2,632
Total
5,208
(b)
(i – v)
Of the 5,208 children in care on 31 December 2025, there have been 5,010 children who have been in care for the whole period between 1 September 2025 and 31 December 2025. The following table shows these children by the number of distinct care arrangements over this period.
Number of Distinct Care Arrangements
Total
One Distinct Care Arrangement
4,287
Two Distinct Care Arrangements
449
Three Distinct Care Arrangements
138
Four Distinct Care Arrangements
60
Five or more Distinct Care Arrangements
76
Total number of children in care for the whole period between 1 September 2025 and 31 December 2025.
5,010
(i – vi)
The following table shows the length of care arrangement for the 5,208 children in care on 31 December 2025.
Length of Time in Care
Total
Less than 30 days
55
30 days to less than 6 months
266
6 months to less than 1 year
306
1 year to less than 2 years
673
2 years to less than 5 years
1,276
5 or more years
2,632
Total
5,208
(b)
(i – v)
Of the 5,208 children in care on 31 December 2025, there have been 5,010 children who have been in care for the whole period between 1 September 2025 and 31 December 2025. The following table shows these children by the number of distinct care arrangements over this period.
Number of Distinct Care Arrangements
Total
One Distinct Care Arrangement
4,287
Two Distinct Care Arrangements
449
Three Distinct Care Arrangements
138
Four Distinct Care Arrangements
60
Five or more Distinct Care Arrangements
76
Total number of children in care for the whole period between 1 September 2025 and 31 December 2025.
5,010
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