The Liberals’ Vicki Dunne has brought more bad news on the child protection front:
Fifty nine per cent of young people in out-of-home care may not have been physically sighted by their caseworkers in a year, the ACT Public Advocate highlighted yesterday in an Assembly Committee Annual Reports hearing.
“During 2010-11, the Public Advocate examined 371 annual review reports of young people in the Community Services Directorate’s out-of home care,” ACT Shadow Community Services Minister Vicki Dunne said today.
“Of those, 120 (32 per cent) showed no evidence that child protection caseworkers actually sighted the children or young people they were responsible for.
“A further 98 (27 per cent) indicated there had been consultation, which could mean a phone call to the foster agency or a kinship carer, but again no evidence that the young person was physically sighted.
“Only 153 files (41 per cent) showed clear evidence that the caseworkers had seen the young person.