Question On Notice No. 2372 asked in the Legislative Council on 6 August 2019 by Hon Alison Xamon
Question Directed to the: Leader of the House representing the Minister for Child Protection; Women's Interests; Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence; Community Services
Parliament: 40 Session: 1
Question
I
refer to the article “We’ve never been asked for our views before: giving
families a voice”, published in the Guardian online on 1 August 2019, and I ask:
(a) is
family group conferencing currently used in Western Australia;
(b) if
no to (a), why not; and
(c) if
yes to (a):
(i) what
percentage of care plans for all children currently in the care of the CEO
included family group conferencing; and
(ii) what
percentage of care plans for Aboriginal children currently in the care of the
CEO included family group conferencing?
Answered on 3 September 2019
(a) No, Family Group Conferencing is not currently used in Western Australia;
(b) The Signs of Safety Child Protection Practice Framework is utilised in Western Australia which is similar to Family Group Conferencing in several regards.
The intention of Family Group Conferencing and Signs of Safety is for families to be brought together and supported in the process of developing their own plans about the safety of the children.
Both processes:
o are facilitated by an impartial person who is not involved in making decisions about the children and family,
o encourage the sharing of information, and
o encourage the families to develop their own plans to address child protection safety concerns.
(c) Not applicable.