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Protection

Responses that protect and promote the safety and wellbeing of children and young people at risk of abuse and neglect.

1. Reporting concerns about the safety or wellbeing of children and young people

Everyone has a responsibility to report concerns about the safety and wellbeing of children and young people. In particular, sexual abuse, serious physical abuse and neglect that causes harm are assaults that must be reported. Officers from the Department for Child Protection and police across the State are available to receive reports of concern. The reporting and response system in Western Australia is enhanced through:

  • The Interagency Collaborative Framework for Protecting Children and the Reciprocal Child Protection Procedures between Department for Child Protection (DCP) and key government agencies.
  • Protocols between the Departments of Child Protection,  Health and  Police for the reporting of sexually transmitted infections (STI) in children and young persons under 14 years of age and for young people aged 14 to 16 with a STI as a result of abuse.
  • The Family Court Act 1997, court personnel, counsellors and mediators must report allegations or suspicions of child abuse in Family Court cases.
  • The Community Services (Child Care) Regulations 1988 and the Community Services (Outside School Hours Care) Regulations 2002, licensed providers of child care or outside school hours care services are required to report abuse in a childcare service.
  • The Children and Community Services Act 2004 protect people from criminal and civil liability when reporting concerns.

2. Responding to concerns about children

The Department for Child Protection (DCP) has the responsibility to receive and assess reports of concerns regarding the safety of children and young people who have been or are likely to be abused or neglected. The capacity of agencies to respond to children in need has been strengthened through:

  • The Joint Approach to Child Abuse protocol between DCP and the WA Police Service implemented state wide and the tri-partite Agreement between DCP, Police and Princess Margaret Hospital which  commits agencies to co-ordinate responses to children who have been abused and neglected.
  • The establishment of the Specialist Child Interview Unit where trained interviewers (DCP Child Protection Workers and Police Officers) interview children to assess the ongoing safety needs and gather evidence for court proceedings.
  • The provision of medical, forensic, social work and therapeutic services by the Child Protection Unit at Princess Margaret Hospital to families and children affected by sexual and serious physical abuse.
  • The creation of 115 new positions, including Community Child Protection Workers, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Support Workers, Youth and Family Engagement Workers, Strong Families Coordinators across metropolitan and country regions.
  • Implementation of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs and the DCP, clarifying responsibilities regarding child protection notifications involving children in immigration detention centres.
  • The redevelopment of the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Strategic Plan to strengthen the delivery of culturally sensitive responses and building on CALD communities’ capacity to protect their members.
  • Development of the Safe Places – Safe People initiative: working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to identify safe places and persons Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people can go to if they feel unsafe.
  • The employment of Child Protection and Domestic Violence police sergeants across the State to coordinate activities within the WA Police Service and with other government agencies and the proposal to establish nine new multi-functional police stations in remote locations.

3. Addressing the effects of abuse for children and families

Through the Department for CHild Protection and the Department of Health and their funded services, there is a comprehensive range of counselling and treatment responses to help children and families overcome the effects of abuse and to prevent abuse from recurring. These include: sexual assault services, family abuse and intervention and domestic violence advocacy services.

4. Strong and relevant legislation

Modern legislation that strengthens protection for children and young people include:

  • The Children and Community Services Act 2004 that reflects current research and contemporary practice in child protection and
    out-of-home care. The Children and Community Services Act 2004 provides protection to people who make reports about children for whom there are concerns and enable agencies to share information that helps protect a child.
  • The monitoring of individuals who may pose a risk to children because of their convictions will be strengthened through new legislation, the Community Protection (Offender Reporting) Act 2004. The new legislation enables the Western Australian Police Service to monitor the whereabouts and activities of persons convicted of offences against children.
  • Increased protection for children and victims of family and domestic violence through the implementation of the Acts Amendment (Family and Domestic Violence) Act 2004.
  • The Working with Children (Criminal Record Checking) Act 2004 introduces compulsory criminal record checking to Western Australia to ensure a consistent and high standard of checking for people working with children.

5. Building an effective evidence based system

Expert advice is provided  to Government and the community through:

  • The Ministerial Advisory Council on Child Protection advises on strategies and activities to improve child protection responses in WA.
  • The Child Death Review Committee examines the deaths of children known to the Department for Community development (DCD) and makes recommendations to improve systems or service gaps to vulnerable children and families.
  • The Advisory Council on the Prevention of Deaths of Children and Young People analyses significant trends in child deaths in the State to identify prevention strategies.
  • Care for Children and Young People Advisory Committee advises on issues that affect children and young people in care or those who are leaving the care system through DCD.

6. Working together

Examples of collaborative responses that are enhancing the protection of children and young people include:

  • Individualised case management of child abuse and family violence cases presented to the Family Court.
  • Programs for young people in detention to help them recognise and deal with situations where they may be at risk of harm.
  • Expansion of the Strong Families program, which facilitates interagency coordination of services for families with complex problems.
  • Developing the Domestic Violence Advocacy Service concept to establish a coordinated response across the State.