| An ACWA WebPage dedicated to the latest information about proclamation and implementation of the Children & Young Persons (Care and Protection Act) 1998 and related legislation in NSW | |
To expand upon information from the News page on the ACWA website, this page will feature detailed information about the legislation as it comes to hand.
See also the Legislation page on the DoCS site
2007
The Department of Community Services (DoCS) released a 'Discussion Paper' on the Children & Young Persons (Care & Protection Act) 1998 .
(http://www.community.nsw.gov.au/html/about/act_review.htm)
Submissions were invited by 30 March 2007. ACWA, in association with partner peaks, held a Forum on 22nd February to discuss the issues raised and sector responses to them. The ACWA Submission is available here.
November 2006
The Department of Community Services (DoCS) has released a 'Discussion Paper' on the Children & Young Persons (Care & Protection Act) 1998 .
It is available at http://www.community.nsw.gov.au/html/about/act_review.htm
Submissions are invited and will be accepted by the Department up until 30 March 2007. It is likely that ACWA will hold a Forum in February to discuss the issues raised and sector responses to them. Members will be advised when a date has been set.
A number of Bills went through State Parliament in the last session of 2006:
Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Amendment (Parent Responsibility Contracts) Bill 2006
Introduced September 6. See Minister's speech. Received assent Thursday 5 October 2006.
Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Amendment Bill 2006
Introduced May 10. Received assent Monday 11 September 2006 – This included the definition of 'high level' information.
Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Miscellaneous Amendments Bill 2006
Introduced into Lower House (Legislative Assembly) October 24 - this is the one that has the change to the 'onus of proof' and a new s149A - G re disclosure. Passed (with an amendment) in Lower House 14 November and Upper House on 15 November.
Adoption Amendment Bill 2006
Introduced into Lower House (Legislative Assembly) October 17.
Education Legislation Amendment Bill 2006
Introduced into Lower House (Legislative Assembly) October 27.
April/May 2006
ACWA, along with other organisations, has made a submission to the Review of the Children & Young Persons (Care & Protection Act) 1998. (See below). They can be accessed as MSWord files or PDFs by clicking on the name below. The Department of Community Services (DoCS) has also put submissions on their site at http://www.community.nsw.gov.au/html/about/act_review.htm
ACWA (MSWord)
UnitingCare Burnside (PDF)
Barnardos (MSWord)
AbSec (MSWord)
NCOSS (MSWord)
YAA (MSWord)
FCA (PDF)
Dec 2005
The NSW Department of Community Services (DoCS) has announced a review of the Children & Young Persons (Care & Protection Act) 1998 in accordance with the statutory requirement of s265 of the Act which states that:
• the Minister is to review this Act to determine whether the policy objectives of the Act remain valid and whether the terms of the Act remain appropriate for securing those objectives
• the review is to be undertaken as soon as possible after 5 December 2005
• the review is to consider, in particular, the effects of the provisions in this Act for permanency planning on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young persons
• a report on the outcome of the review is to be tabled in each House of Parliament by 5 December 2006.
The focus of the review is to assess the validity and appropriateness of the Act and to identify what may be changed to improve the legislation. It is intended that the review targets, in particular, the provisions that have been most challenging in terms of interpretation, implementation, and workability. The Ministerial Advisory Committee will be a key vehicle for advice on the review of the Act.
A paper outlining the scope of the review and some of the issues that have been identified is available on the DoCS website Written submissions are invited and should be made by 28 February 2006. ACWA will be making a submission and will consult with members to identify the main issues and potential areas for change. Paret of this consultation is a forum to be held on February10th 2006. Members have been advised but details can be obtained by emailing us at ACWA.
A series of Information Bulletins has been published by ACWA and accessible here as PDFs
If you need to access Adobe Acrobat Reader to read any PDF linked from this website click here.
(NB: These information bulletins are produced by ACWA to advise member agencies about the commencement of out-of-home care sections of the Act. All information herein is provided on the basis of our best understanding of the Act at this time. It does not represent legal interpretation or opinion.)
Number 1 September 2003
Number 2 January 2004
Number 3 March 2004
Number 4 September 2004
Previously Published Information - tracking the history of the legislation since 1998
Proclamation
Proclamation Schedule released by the (them) Minister for Community Services The Hon Carmel Tebbutt MLC, in July 2003
The Minister for Community Services, the Hon Faye Lo Po' MP anounced on February 15 2002 that proclamation of the out of home care sections of the Children & Young Persons (Care & Protection Act) 1998 will be delayed until July 2002. ACWA has expressed concern at the delay and called for the Act to be implemented so that the long awaited benefits of the legislation can be put in place. See our media release here.
Permanency Planning Bill PassedThe Permanency Planning Amendment Bill, has finally passed through NSW State Parliament. The Opposition successfully moved to amend the definition of out of home care so as to include certain groups of children who are placed with relatives. The Bill now awaits proclamation.
In her press release the Minister for Community Services, the Hon. Faye Lo Po' MP, hailed the permanency planning amendments as "crucial reforms which are long overdue" and "one of my proudest achievements as Minister". However in relation to the kinship care amendment she cautioned that "I will not be proceeding to implement this provision until I have been fully advised of all the implications..."
ProclamationSections of the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection Act) 1998 were proclaimed on December 18 2000 and July 1 2001. The Minister for Community Services has now released further details of the staged proclamation. See also the Enact website
Permanency PlanningThe Minister for Community Services, the Hon. Faye Lo Po' MP, tabled a amended Bill in Parliament on 27 June 2001 to follow up on her proposals to strengthen Permanency Planning. It is expected that a vote on the Bill will be held during the September sitting of Parliament. The ACWA submission on the Bill is available as a Word document.
See the Parliament House website for details of the bill or click here for a .pdf version.The original Bill was tabled on June 21 2000 and is available below
The Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Amendment (Permanency Planning) Bill 2000 (PDF)
A discussion paper on Permanency Planning released by the Minister for Community Services on 20 February 2001 is available as a.pdf on the DoCS website.
The ACWA response was submitted on April 2 and can be downloaded here in MSWord formatSee also papers from the Permanency Planning Forums held in November 1999 and July 2000.
Children's Guardian
The Minister for Community Services has announced the appointment of Kerryn Boland to replace the inaugural Children's Guardian Linda Mallett. Responsibilities and powers of the Guardian can be found in Sections 180 - 186 of the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 .