Page 1408 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 6 May 2015
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To deliver these changes we will be transforming the role of the community service providers. These changes, which we will be ushering in through the current procedural process, will enable service providers to have a far greater role in supporting children and young people, requiring them to provide continuity of supports throughout a child’s time in care.
The aim in a step up is to break intergenerational cycles of disadvantage for the next generation of care leavers, providing them with a foundation for an independent and productive adulthood.
MADAM SPEAKER: A supplementary question, Ms Fitzharris.
MS FITZHARRIS: Minister, how will accountability and the effectiveness of out of home care be strengthened under a step up for our kids?
MR GENTLEMAN: I thank Ms Fitzharris for her supplementary question. A step up will strengthen accountability and transparency to ensure a high-functioning care system, improving the long-term education, health and participation outcomes for children and young people in care. A step up will transform how we support children in care. One major change is the increased role for community organisations to deliver services.
We will focus on additional investment to develop the capacity of the workforce to transition to a care system informed by traumatic experiences of children and young people. It places their needs at the centre. We have established an independent office of Human Services Registrar, who will be responsible for regulatory oversight of the sector, providing registration, monitoring and stronger quality assurance mechanisms. Our aim is to provide better life outcomes for children. We are asking service providers to step up and do just that by introducing outcomes based on contracts and performance incentives so that services will be focused on the needs of children and young people and make a real difference in their life path.
Governance arrangements have been enhanced with the establishment of the interim Children and Youth Services Council, which will provide me with independent and frank advice on the implementation of a step up for our kids.
We are further safeguarding the integrity of the system by establishing two independent advocacy and support services, one for carers and the other one for birth families. This will ensure that appropriate advice and support are available to people when they need it, at arm’s length of both the government and service providers. We are building the framework to support a stronger, safer and more sustainable out of home care system to improve the outcomes for our community’s most vulnerable children and young people.
MADAM SPEAKER: A supplementary question, Ms Fitzharris.
MS FITZHARRIS: Minister, how will the ACT government work with the out of home care sector to develop new skills and service models?
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