What we do

In care, children and young people will have the supports they need to enjoy their childhood, feel safe and cared for, and develop into adulthood.

Safe living arrangements

The protection of children and young people from harm is a key priority for the department. Regular monitoring and reporting on the safety and wellbeing of children in care is critical to ensure that children remain safe and that any concerns about their care are resolved.

When a child is in the custody or guardianship of the chief executive and placed in care, the department has a responsibility to ensure they are cared for in a way that ensures their safety, belonging and wellbeing. The department works collaboratively with members of the child’s care team who share the responsibility to proactively monitor the care arrangement and provide effective supports to the carer or care service to meet the child’s needs.

The Child Protection Act 1999 sets out the standards by which children in care are to be cared for. These standards reflect the reasonable and widely held expectations that a child in care should have their needs met in an accountable way.

The department must respond to concerns about the standard of care provided to a child. This can occur by:

conducting a standards of care review, where a child has not experienced harm or
recording a harm report and responding with an investigation and assessment, where a child has experienced harm, or it is suspected they have experienced harm.

A standards of care review will determine whether the standards of care have been met by the carer or care service.

A harm report investigation and assessment will determine if a child has been harmed or is at risk of harm and include an assessment of whether the standards of care have been met. Depending on the outcome, the department, in collaboration with the foster and kinship care service or residential care service, may review the carer’s suitability, the level of support available and provided to the child and/or carer, or appropriateness of the care arrangement to meet the child’s safety, belonging and wellbeing needs.

Harm report data are reported in the reference period that the harm was reported, which is not necessarily when the harm occurred (historical concerns).

A carer or staff member of a care service may be held responsible for harm occurring if their actions or inactions resulted in a child being harmed (that is, failure to protect).

Harm reports

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

What is being counted

Data is for the year ending the reference date (12 months of data).
Harm reports: If a child is subject to more than one harm report, they are counted for each harm report within reference period.
Children subject to a harm report: If a child is subject to more than one harm report, they are counted only once in each reference period.
Figures relate to the reference period during which the alleged harm was recorded, which is not necessarily when the harm actually occurred.
Age group: Based on the age of the child as at the reference date.
Non-Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: Includes non-Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children and children whose Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander status is unknown or not stated.

Definition notes

Harm report: A harm report is recorded where information indicates that a child in a care arrangement has experienced harm or it is suspected that they have experienced harm, and the harm or suspected harm may have involved the actions or inactions of a carer, household member or the staff member of a licensed care service.

Harm reports substantiated

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

What is being counted

Data is for the year ending the reference date (12 months of data).
Substantiated harm report: If a child is subject to more than one substantiated harm report, they are counted for each substantiated harm report within reference period.
Children subject to a substantiated harm report: If a child is subject to more than one substantiated harm report, they are counted only once in each reference period.
Figures relate to the reference period during which the abuse was recorded which is not necessarily when the abuse actually occurred.
Age group: Based on the age of the child as at the reference date.
Non-Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: Includes non-Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children and children whose Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander status is unknown or not stated.

Definition notes

Harm report: A harm report is recorded where information indicates that a child in a care arrangement has experienced harm or it is suspected that they have experienced harm, and the harm or suspected harm may have involved the actions or inactions of a carer, household member or the staff member of a licensed care service.
Harm report substantiation: The outcome of a harm report investigation and assessment where it is assessed that the child or young person has experienced harm and/or there is unacceptable risk of future harm.
Most serious abuse type: Refers to the abuse type assessed as being most serious, according to their first substantiated harm report in the period.

Proportion of children in out-of-home care subject to a harm report substantiation

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

What is being counted

Data is for the year ending the reference date (12 months of data).
Divides children in the custody or guardianship of the Chief Executive who were placed in out-of-home care as per section 82(1) of the Child Protection Act 1999, and who were the subject of a harm report substantiation by the number of children in out-of-home care (including foster carers, provisionally approved carers, kinship carers and residential services) and who were subject to a child protection order or court assessment order granting custody/guardianship to the chief executive at anytime during the reference period.
Figures relate to the reference period during which the alleged abuse was recorded which is not necessarily when the abuse actually occurred.
A carer or staff member of a care service may be held responsible for abuse occurring if their actions or inactions resulted in a child being abused (that is, failure to protect).

Definition notes

Harm report: A harm report will be recorded for any child where the information gathered indicates that a child in out-of-home care has experienced abuse or it is suspected that they have experienced abuse, and the abuse or suspected abuse may have involved the actions or inactions of a carer, adult household member or the staff member of a care service, including failure to protect a child.
Harm report substantiation: The outcome of a harm report investigation and assessment where it is assessed that the child or young person has experienced abuse and/or there is unacceptable risk of future abuse.
Out-of-home care (in care): The provision of care outside the family home to children who are in need of protection or who require a safe placement while their protection and safety needs are assessed. In accordance with nationally agreed upon reporting definitions, data for out-of-home care refers to children placed with kin, other home-based carers or residential care services.