The National Coalition on Child Safety and Wellbeing today applauded the Federal Government’s announcement that it will allocate $5.1 million to better support young people to transit successfully to adulthood from out-of-home care (foster and other forms of care), and to strengthen parenting skills in the first 1,000 days of a child’s life.
Two three-year trials will be delivered under the Third Action Plan of the National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2009-2020 (the ‘National Framework’): the Building Capacity in Australian Parents (BCAP) trial and the Towards Independent Adulthood (TIA) trial.
National Coalition Convenor, Dr Brian Babington, said ‘this funding will significantly boost national efforts aimed at improving child safety and wellbeing under the National Framework.’
‘The TIA initiative comes at a time when we continue to see increases in the number of children and young people who enter the out-of-home care system, usually as a result of abuse or neglect. It is a strong recognition by the Federal Government that many young people struggle after exiting care and that far more needs to be done’.
‘Over 43,000 children were in out-of-home care as at 30 June 2015. That represents a trebling of the number of children in this situation across Australia in less than two decades’.
‘The parenting trial is an important recognition of the need to focus attention on the first 1,000 days of a child’s life, especially to assist those parents who face significant disadvantage’, he said.
The National Framework is Australia’s first-ever COAG-endorsed plan aimed at substantially reducing rates of child abuse and increasing child wellbeing. The National Coalition on Child Safety and Wellbeing represents around 200 organisations and prominent academics who are working with Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments to realise the goals of the National Framework. Families Australia, a peak national NGO, convenes the National Coalition.
Comment contact: Dr Brian Babington, CEO, Families Australia, Phone: 0417 550 149.
Media release: Child safety and wellbeing receive Budget boost