Inquiry into Home Care for Children and Young People – South Australian Economic and Finance Committee
In April 2024, The Salvation Army provided a submission to the South Australian Economic and Finance Committee, responding to the Inquiry into Home Care for Children and Young People. The Committee sought input to identify the long-term economic and social costs of supporting children in and out of home care, and outcomes for children and young people.
The Salvation Army’s submission drew on our frontline experience providing youth transitional housing and was informed by consultations with our youth stream, alongside input from family violence and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Ministry teams. The submission discussed the immediate, medium, and long term social costs of supporting children in non-family-based care systems, and opportunities for improvement.
The Submission focused on the following critical points:
- Children and young people who are placed in non-family-based care (NFBC) experience poorer wellbeing outcomes than the broader population. Drivers and consequences of engaging with statutory care systems and NFBC include chronic homelessness, intergenerational child protection involvement and obstacles to achieving educational and employment success.
- Young people in non-family-based care experience an accelerated need to develop independence and life skills. Emotional security and a sense of belonging during care are significant predictors of positive outcomes for young people. The Salvation Army submission recommended investment in transitional living options which promote pathways to independent living for care leavers and programs which enhance permanency and stability in NFBC.
- The Salvation Army supports the implementation of NFBC models which are therapeutic, supportive, and consider the unique experiences of children. We recommended that the South Australian Government commit to ensuring NFBC programs are individualised, child-centred and promote choice for children and young people. We identified the critical need to encourage workforce and carer capacity building across the sector.
- Many of the children supported in NFBC experience disadvantage. The Salvation Army submission drew particular attention to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people who are overrepresented in the child protection system. We recommended that the South Australian Government work to address systemic racism to prevent ongoing, intergenerational child protection trauma. This should include improving access to NFBC interventions which are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander owned and controlled.
- The Submission recognised the impact of domestic and family violence on children and families encountering child protection responses and how violence shapes parenting. We identified the need for increased investment in meaningful and holistic community-based prevention and early intervention services which address and prevent violence. We urged the critical need to ensure child protection responses are trauma informed.
At the heart of our submission was the need to safeguard children and young people, and ensure non-family-based care promotes best outcomes.