❓ The Minister for Child Protection provides an update on improvements to Working With Children Check screening processes, including increased use of interim negative notices, additional staffing, proactive compliance campaigns (e.g., monitoring Gumtree ads), and community training. The response also highlights WA's contribution to the national database and contrasts the current government's actions with those of the previous government.
AnsweredQoN 81Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
WORKING WITH CHILDREN CHECKS
81. Ms J.M. FREEMAN to the Minister for Child Protection:
I refer to the McGowan Labor government's commitment
to child safety. Can the minister update the house on how the government is
improving the working with children check screening processes and further
strengthening child protection safeguards?
81. Ms J.M. FREEMAN to the Minister for Child Protection:
I refer to the McGowan Labor government's commitment
to child safety. Can the minister update the house on how the government is
improving the working with children check screening processes and further
strengthening child protection safeguards?
AnswerView source ↗
I certainly can. I am very proud of the Labor government's
history of supporting child safety in this state, including our work on working
with children checks. We know there was an Auditor General's report
late last year. In fact, the issue of working with children checks was debated
quite a bit in this Parliament, including a comparison of records across
successive governments. I am pleased to report that, since that report, there
has been a strengthening by the Department of
Communities in its criteria for issuing interim negative notices. Members will
remember that interim negative notices are the mechanism used to hold
people from working with children if there is an investigation about whether
they should get a card. There has now been a strengthening of the criteria. As
a result, between November 2019 and January this year, 96 interim negative
notices were issued by the department compared with 78 issued over the entire
2018–19 year. That gives an indication that there has been much more
use of interim negative notices while investigations are taking place.
Through this government, the
department has been allocated additional staff to the working with children
check screening unit to fast-track current applications awaiting assessment.
Importantly, the department has expanded its proactive compliance campaign—that
is, identifying areas of noncompliance to ensure that those who undertake work
with children and their employers comply with their obligations under the act.
A good example of that was working with ads that appear on Gumtree, for
instance, and as a result of the department's work, over 60 ads were
taken down because the ads that were appearing on the social media platform of
Gumtree did not specify that people needed to have working with children
checks. In fact, 32 of those ads have been followed up for further compliance
work. Therefore, prosecutions might result from that work.
Similarly,
additional community training opportunities have been undertaken by the
department. This was an area of criticism.
The Auditor General recommended further work and that we needed to go out and
do more proactive work with employers and community organisations so
they understand their obligations under the act. I am particularly indebted to
SportsWest and the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural
Industries, but particularly SportsWest, which has been doing some really good
work reminding community groups and employers of their obligations regarding working with children checks. Of course, Western Australia
was one of the first states to make sure that we report to the national
working with children check national reference system. We are contributing
information. If someone receives a negative notice, we make sure it is put on a
national database in case someone moves to
another jurisdiction to apply for a working with children check card and tries
to usurp the process that way.
I am very proud of the proactive
work we are doing. Over 300 000 working with children check applications are made each year, so there are a lot. I may have got
ahead of myself; I do not think it is 300 000, but a lot of applications are made each year, and we need to make sure we respond to them quickly. For
those people who have a criminal record, for whom the checks need to be made,
we need to make sure it is done properly, but of course we err on the side of
caution. That is in contrast to the previous government's work. In
2014, the Auditor General made a very similar critical evaluation of the system
under the previous Liberal–National government and found that it was
wanting, but the previous government did not make a very proactive response. I am
proud to say that we have acted promptly in response to the Auditor General's
report and will continue to work on not only the working with children checks,
but also implementing the recommendations from the royal commission.
history of supporting child safety in this state, including our work on working
with children checks. We know there was an Auditor General's report
late last year. In fact, the issue of working with children checks was debated
quite a bit in this Parliament, including a comparison of records across
successive governments. I am pleased to report that, since that report, there
has been a strengthening by the Department of
Communities in its criteria for issuing interim negative notices. Members will
remember that interim negative notices are the mechanism used to hold
people from working with children if there is an investigation about whether
they should get a card. There has now been a strengthening of the criteria. As
a result, between November 2019 and January this year, 96 interim negative
notices were issued by the department compared with 78 issued over the entire
2018–19 year. That gives an indication that there has been much more
use of interim negative notices while investigations are taking place.
Through this government, the
department has been allocated additional staff to the working with children
check screening unit to fast-track current applications awaiting assessment.
Importantly, the department has expanded its proactive compliance campaign—that
is, identifying areas of noncompliance to ensure that those who undertake work
with children and their employers comply with their obligations under the act.
A good example of that was working with ads that appear on Gumtree, for
instance, and as a result of the department's work, over 60 ads were
taken down because the ads that were appearing on the social media platform of
Gumtree did not specify that people needed to have working with children
checks. In fact, 32 of those ads have been followed up for further compliance
work. Therefore, prosecutions might result from that work.
Similarly,
additional community training opportunities have been undertaken by the
department. This was an area of criticism.
The Auditor General recommended further work and that we needed to go out and
do more proactive work with employers and community organisations so
they understand their obligations under the act. I am particularly indebted to
SportsWest and the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural
Industries, but particularly SportsWest, which has been doing some really good
work reminding community groups and employers of their obligations regarding working with children checks. Of course, Western Australia
was one of the first states to make sure that we report to the national
working with children check national reference system. We are contributing
information. If someone receives a negative notice, we make sure it is put on a
national database in case someone moves to
another jurisdiction to apply for a working with children check card and tries
to usurp the process that way.
I am very proud of the proactive
work we are doing. Over 300 000 working with children check applications are made each year, so there are a lot. I may have got
ahead of myself; I do not think it is 300 000, but a lot of applications are made each year, and we need to make sure we respond to them quickly. For
those people who have a criminal record, for whom the checks need to be made,
we need to make sure it is done properly, but of course we err on the side of
caution. That is in contrast to the previous government's work. In
2014, the Auditor General made a very similar critical evaluation of the system
under the previous Liberal–National government and found that it was
wanting, but the previous government did not make a very proactive response. I am
proud to say that we have acted promptly in response to the Auditor General's
report and will continue to work on not only the working with children checks,
but also implementing the recommendations from the royal commission.
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