Tuesday, 30 May 2023

Ministers statements: child protection

Lizzie BLANDTHORN (Western Metropolitan – Minister for Disability, Ageing and Carers, Minister for Child Protection and Family Services) (12:38): I rise to update the house on how this government is providing record investment to reduce the over-representation of Aboriginal children and young people in out-of-home care. This week is National Reconciliation Week, with the theme for this year being ‘Be a voice for generations’, with all Australians being urged to create a better, more just Australia for all of us. Earlier this year the Premier and I met with Aboriginal community controlled organisations from across Victoria to listen to their needs and discuss how we can work in partnership to deliver better outcomes for Aboriginal children and young people in the child protection and family services system. What we heard from these meetings was the need to increase the Aboriginal children in Aboriginal care program and provide flexible funding so ACCOs can deliver innovative approaches that are place based to prevent a child or young person’s entry into the statutory child protection system.

We have listened and we have delivered. Last week I met with ACCOs from across Victoria to announce that the 2023–24 budget included a record investment of $140 million to address the over-representation of Aboriginal children in care. This is the biggest single investment to support Aboriginal children and young people in a budget and builds on the $191 million we have invested since 2018 to support the implementation of Wungurilwil Gapgapduir. The $140 million investment includes $63.9 million to expand the Aboriginal children in Aboriginal care program, enabling authorised ACCOs to deliver a statutory child protection approach that best works for their community; $49.5 million into Aboriginal-led family services and early intervention from Koori-supported playgroups and family preservation and reunification response programs through to new Aboriginal led and designed models of early intervention; $13.7 million to further expand the Community Protecting Boorais trial, providing for Aboriginal-led investigations of child protection reports; $9 million in funding for workforce development; and $4 million for the Aboriginal community infrastructure program.

Without offending anticipation, I look forward to this chamber’s support in passing legislation that will take the next step for self-determination in the child protection and family services system. This legislation is required to ensure that we can commence the work on the Community Protecting Boorais trial. This biggest single investment to support Aboriginal children and young people in a budget is the direct result of our government’s work to listen to our First Peoples and provide them with the resources they need to improve outcomes.