The latest data on three areas of child protection services -
child abuse and neglect; children on care and protection orders;
and children in out of home care - are contained in Child
Protection Australia 1997-98, to be released today by the
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).
According to the report, the number of notifications of child
abuse and neglect in 1997-98 was higher than in 1996-97 for
Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern
Territory.
However, the report's author Helen Johnstone, said that the
number of substantiated cases has continued to fall. After reaching
a peak of 30,615 substantiations in 1994-95, this figure has
dropped to 26,025 in 1997-98. Of these, 31% were physical abuse,
26% neglect, 24% emotional abuse, and 16% sexual abuse.
'The decline in substantiations is likely to be due to changes
in policies and practices in some States and Territories,' she
said. 'New South Wales, for example, shows a large decrease in the
number of substantiations since 1995-96 which probably reflects new
policies which have changed the way that notifications and
investigations are handled.'
As at 30 June 1998, 16,449 children were on care and protection
orders in Australia. This is an increase of 731 on the number of
children on care and protection orders at 30 June 1997.
The majority of children (75%) were on guardianship or custody
orders, with the remaining on supervisory, interim, temporary and
other orders. There were 14,470 children in out of home care at 30
June 1998, of whom 87% were in home based care. The majority of
children in out of home care were also on a care and protection
order.
Overall, 3.5 children per 1,000 were on care and protection
orders in Australia at 30 June 1998. The rate for Indigenous
children was 15.5 per 1000-more than five times the rate for other
children. Of children in out of home care, the rate for Indigenous
children at 30 June 1998 was 14.2 per 1000 compared with 2.6 for
other children.
Ms Johnstone said the differences between the rates of
Indigenous and other children represented in the data could not be
attributed to any single cause. 'As the literature shows, there are
many and complex reasons for this over-representation. Poverty and
unemployment, parental health problems, and lack of adequate
support services for Indigenous families could be some of the
reasons.'
27 August 1999
Further information: Helen Johnstone ph, 02
6244 1157.
For media copies of the report: Lena Searle, ph.
02 6244 1032.
Availability: Check the AIHW Publications
Catalogue for details.