Communities—Home care services
528. Hon Nick Goiran to the minister representing the Minister for Child Protection:
I refer to the minister's correction on 26 June 2025 to his answers to questions without notice 373 and 419, in which it was revealed that the number of carer households that did not have a placement was 1,240, with the longest amount of time without a placement being more than 10 years.
(1) How many of these carers without a placement have been marked as awaiting a child of defined cultural background?
(2) How many of these carers are on a self-requested break between placements?
(3) Are there any other reasons why a carer household would not currently have a placement?
(4) If carers have not had placements for a lengthy time, are there policies in place that would trigger a reassessment to ensure continued suitability for placement?
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 as follows.
(1)–(4) Community carers is a new care arrangement type that was launched in Foster and Family Carers Week. This cohort of carers are from a specific culturally and linguistically diverse or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background and provide care arrangements for children from the same or similar cultural backgrounds.
Information on self-requested breaks is not captured in a reportable format in the child protection information system and is contained within individual case files.
Not all carer households will have children placed for a range of reasons, including approved carer households that provide short break and emergency care or carer households that may be in between care arrangements.
If a carer has not had a child in their care for more than 12 months, they are required to undergo a reassessment before a child may be placed with them.
