What family support services do

Family support services are helping families sooner, supporting them to provide a safe family environment for children to grow and thrive, reducing the need for child protection services.

Family Wellbeing Service (FWS)

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Family Wellbeing Services (FWS)

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Family Wellbeing Services make it easier for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families in communities across Queensland to access culturally responsive support to improve their social, emotional, physical and spiritual wellbeing, and build their capacity to safely care for and protect their children.

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community controlled services collaborate with a wide range of universal and specialist services, and with each individual family, to plan and provide a tailored and coordinated response to their specific needs.

Families referred to a Family Wellbeing Service by whether consent was received

Source: Department of Child Safety, Seniors and Disability Services.

What is being counted

  1. Data is for the year ending the reference date (12 months of data).

  2. Counts the number of referrals opened and recorded as a case by a Family Wellbeing Service during the reporting period by whether consent was received to commence the service at either the end of the reference period or when the case was closed.

  3. The consent status of ‘No consent – other reasons’ includes cases that were closed for reasons such as the family was non-contactable, the family were already engaged with another support service or the family were referred in error.

  4. Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: A family is identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander if one or more people attached to the case are identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.

  5. Non-Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: A family where no people attached to the case are identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander or their Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander status is unknown.

Definition notes

  1. Case: A case is created by a Family Wellbeing Service to begin working with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander families to plan and provide a tailored, holistic and coordinated response to their specific needs.

  2. Consent: Once a referral is received by a Family Wellbeing Service the service then work towards gaining consent from the family to begin assistance. Receiving services from a Family Wellbeing Service is voluntary for families and consent is required.

  3. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Family Wellbeing Service: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Family Wellbeing Services (FWS) are community controlled family support services that work with families as early as possible, providing tailored, culturally safe support to improve their wellbeing and prevent their problems from escalating.

Percentage of families referred to a Family Wellbeing Service by whether consent was received

Source: Department of Child Safety, Seniors and Disability Services.

What is being counted

  1. Data is for the year ending the reference date (12 months of data).

  2. Counts the number of referrals opened and recorded as a case by a Family Wellbeing Service during the reporting period by whether consent was received to commence the service at either the end of the reference period or when the case was closed as a proportion of all cases created.

  3. The consent status of ‘No consent – other reasons’ includes cases that were closed for reasons such as the family was non-contactable, the family were already engaged with another support service or the family were referred in error.

  4. Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: A family is identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander if one or more people attached to the case are identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.

  5. Non-Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: A family where no people attached to the case are identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander or their Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander status is unknown.

Definition notes

  1. Case: A case is created by a Family Wellbeing Service to begin working with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander families to plan and provide a tailored, holistic and coordinated response to their specific needs.

  2. Consent: Once a referral is received by a Family Wellbeing Service the service then work towards gaining consent from the family to begin assistance.  Receiving services from a Family Wellbeing Service is voluntary for families and consent is required.

  3. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Family Wellbeing Service: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Family Wellbeing Services (FWS) are community controlled family support services that work with families as early as possible, providing tailored, culturally safe support to improve their wellbeing and prevent their problems from escalating.

Families receiving a Family Wellbeing Service

Source: Department of Child Safety, Seniors and Disability Services.

What is being counted

  1. Data is for the year ending the reference date (12 months of data).

  2. Counts all families where consent was received and the case remained open at some point during the reporting period irrespective of when the case was created and/or closed.

  3. Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: A family is identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander if one or more people attached to the case are identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.

  4. Non-Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: A family where no people attached to the case are identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander or their Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander status is unknown.

Definition notes

  1. Case: A case is created by a Family Wellbeing Service to begin working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families to plan and provide a tailored, holistic and coordinated response to their specific needs.

  2. Consent: Once a referral is received by a Family Wellbeing Service the service then work towards gaining consent from the family to begin assistance.  Receiving services from a Family Wellbeing Service is voluntary for families and consent is required.

  3. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Family Wellbeing Service: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Family Wellbeing Services (FWS) are community controlled family support services that work with families as early as possible, providing tailored, culturally safe support to improve their wellbeing and prevent their problems from escalating.