Page 3888 - Week 10 - Thursday, 28 August 2008
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the committee highlighted a perceived fear by parents with complex issues—mainly mothers—of losing their children to care and protection services. Early intervention services play a vital role in reaching families where infants and children are at risk of becoming vulnerable before they are brought to the attention of care and protection services.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are significantly over-represented amongst the number of children on care and protection orders in the ACT. In the year 2006-07 there were 113 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children on care and protection orders, equating to just under 20 per cent of all children on care and protection orders in the ACT in that year.
The committee understands that transport is a key issue for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the ACT. The report contains 18 recommendations. They include suggestions for ways of assisting with transport needs, better resourcing of early intervention services, enhancement of collaborative practices across services and sectors, a targeted antenatal education program for high-risk expectant mothers and strategies for the development of specialised services for men.
The committee heard that to best address the needs of men a combination of services was required. They included specific services for men as well as more male-inclusive practices in the family and relationship services than are currently available. Breaking the cycle of intergenerational disadvantage requires a whole-of-community response that treats parents with complex needs with respect and compassion to ensure that today’s vulnerable infants do not become tomorrow’s parents with complex needs.
I will add a couple of other points about this report. As I said, the report makes 18 recommendations that cut across a lot of different areas. We have focused on from pre-birth to two years of age given the short time frame that we had to work on this inquiry and to hear from people.
We had numerous submissions, including from a number of organisations. There were 14 submissions in total. I thank those organisations that took the time to put their submissions in. They include the Women’s Centre for Health Matters, SIDS and Kids ACT, Companion House, Marymead Child and Family Centre, Canberra Mothercraft Society Inc, which includes the Queen Elizabeth II Family Centre, Carers ACT, Families ACT, Canberra Men’s Centre, ADFACT Child and Family Program, ACT government, Domestic Violence Crisis Service, Public Advocate of the ACT, Families and Friends for Drug Law Reform, and WIREDD and Lesley’s Place.
I would like to thank them for putting in their submissions. I also thank those other people who appeared before the committee at public hearings. I would particularly like to thank Ms Helen Pappas and Mr Frank Duggan for taking the committee on a visit to the child and family centre in Tuggeranong.
As members will be aware, we have the child and family centres in Tuggeranong and Gungahlin. These are a reasonably new incarnation within the ACT, having only been built in the last four years. I do commend the government for having built these centres. They provide one place for people to come for a variety of reasons for
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