Working with children checks
506. Hon Steve Martin to the minister representing the Minister for Child Protection:
I refer to working with children checks.
(1) Which minister is responsible for:
(a) the creation and distribution of working with children cards; and
(b) overseeing the Working with Children Screening Unit and the screening and reassessment processes?
(2) Noting that working with children checks can be triggered for reassessment if the Working with Children Screening Unit receives information about a change in a person's criminal history, from what sources does this information come?
(3) What changes in a person's criminal history are always automatically sent to the Working with Children Screening Unit, and what rules and/or legislation govern these criteria?
(4) How many reassessments of issued working with children cards were undertaken in 2024–25?
(5) How many reassessments of issued working with children cards resulted in a working with children check being cancelled in 2024–25?
Hon Jackie Jarvis replied:
I thank the honourable member for some notice of the question. The following response has been provided by the Minister for Child Protection.
The Department of Communities advises:
(1) Working with children checks fall under the responsibility of the Minister for Child Protection.
(2) The information comes from the Western Australia Police Force.
(3) Any change to a person's criminal history information in Western Australia is automatically sent. Section 17(1) of the Working with Children (Screening) Act 2004 allows for a designated authority (the Western Australia Police Force) to provide this information to the CEO, the director general, of the Department of Communities.
(4) There were 262.
(5) There were 98.
