Child protection Australia 2024–25

Introduction

Child protection departments provide and/or fund a range of services to support children in the child protection system to ensure they have stable, long-term care arrangements. These include:

• intensive family support services
• care and protection orders
• out-of-home care.

Intensive family support services

What is the role of intensive family support services?

Child protection departments may also work to strengthen families with referrals to intensive family support services at any time for advice, education, and support.

In 2024–25, 36,700 children were provided intensive family support services. Of these, most (87% or 31,700) were aged under 15.

Source: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table 6.2

These services aim to:

• support parents to care for their children
• prevent separation of children from parents
• achieve reunification where separation has already occurred.

More information on intensive family support services, including government expenditure, can be found in the Report on Government Services 2026.

Care and protection orders

What is a care and protection order?

Care and protection orders are legal orders or arrangements that give child protection departments some responsibility for a child’s welfare. Children can be placed on care and protection orders for various reasons, including:

• having been seriously harmed
• being at risk or significant risk of harm
• having no other care options.

The 3 main categories of legal responsibility conferred by care and protection orders include arrangements where:

• parents retain legal responsibility
• departments are given legal responsibility
• nominated carers are given legal responsibility.

A substantiated notification of maltreatment does not necessarily mean that a child will be placed on an order. In 2024–25, about one-fifth (20% or 7,500) of children who were subjects of substantiations were subsequently placed on an order within 12 months following substantiation.

Source: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table 3.6

In cases where parents have made changes to ensure their children’s safety and wellbeing at home, or are prepared to do so, the department may decide an order is unnecessary and consider other options, including:

• referring the family to support services
• putting a safety plan in place
• determining that no further action is needed.

Refer to the Appendices for more information on the different types of care and protection orders.

How many children were on care and protection orders?

At 30 June 2025, 45,900 children were on care and protection orders (10 per 1,000). Of these:

• 18,900 (41%) were Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children (67 per 1,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children)
• 27,000 were non-Indigenous children (6.3 per 1,000 non-Indigenous children).

Source: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table 3.7

In 2024–25, around 7,900 children were admitted to care and protection orders. Of these:

• almost three-quarters (71% or 5,600) were aged under 10 years.

Sources: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data tables 3.1.

More (8,600) children were discharged from care and protection orders. Of these, about one-fifth were continuously on an order:

• between one to 2 years (15% or 1,300)
• between 2 to 4 years (15% or 1,300)
• for 8 years or more (30% or 2,500).

Source: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table 3.2

Characteristics of children on care and protection orders

For children who were on care and protection orders at 30 June 2025:

• half (50% or 23,200) were living with relatives/kin in home-based care
• one-third (34% or 15,700) were aged 10–14 years
• about 3 in 5 (60% or 27,800) were on finalised guardianship or custody orders.

Sources: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data tables 3.3 and 3.4

Has the number of children on care and protection orders changed over time?

Between 30 June 2021 and 30 June 2025, the rate of children on care and protection orders has slightly decreased from 11 per 1,000 to 10 per 1,000.

From 2020–21 to 2024–25, the number of children:

• admitted to orders decreased from 12,100 to about 7,900 children
• discharged from orders decreased from 11,800 to about 8,600.

Sources: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data tables T1.1, T3.1

Out-of-home care

What is out-of-home care?

Out-of-home care is overnight care for children aged under 18 who are unable to live with their families due to child safety concerns. This includes placements approved by the child protection department for which there is ongoing case management and financial payment (including where a financial payment has been offered but has been declined by the carer). This nationally consistent definition for out-of-home care was implemented in 2018–19.

Out-of-home care includes:

• legal (court-ordered) placements
• voluntary placements
• placements made for the purpose of providing respite for parents and/or carers.

Children are placed in out-of-home care for many reasons, including:

• being the subjects of substantiations and needing a protective environment
• having parents who are incapable of providing adequate care
• needing alternative accommodation during times of conflict
• having parents or carers who need respite.

Consistent with the principle of keeping children with their families where it is safe and appropriate to do so, out-of-home care placements are considered to be a last resort.

The national definition for out-of-home care excludes children on third-party parental responsibility orders as the minister or executive no longer has guardianship of children on these orders. However, all states and territories continue to fund carers of children on third-party parental responsibility orders and some (New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory) continue to provide some level of case management.

As at 30 June 2025 there were about 10,400 children on third-party parental responsibility orders. Children on third-party parental responsibility orders are considered to have achieved a more permanent arrangement.

Source: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table T1.2

Refer to the Appendices for more information on the different types of out-of-home care placements.

How many children were in out-of-home care?

At 30 June 2025, 34,600 children were in out-of-home care (7.5 per 1,000). Of these:

• 15,300 (44%) were Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children (54 per 1,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children)
• 19,200 were non-Indigenous children (4.5 per 1,000 non-Indigenous children).

Sources: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table T1.1

In 2024–25, the rate of children admitted to out-of-home care was 1.7 per 1,000, which was similar to the rate of children discharged (1.8 per 1,000) from out-of-home care during this period. Nationally:

• 8,000 children were admitted to out-of-home care
• 8,300 children were discharged from out-of-home care.

Children in the youngest age group (under one) had the highest admission rate of 5.9 per 1,000 compared with 1.8 per 1,000 or less for other age groups.

The discharge rate was highest for children in the oldest age group (15–17 years) at 4.5 per 1,000 compared with 1.4 per 1,000 or less for other age groups.

Source: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table 4.6

Characteristics of children in out-of-home care

For children who were in out-of-home care at 30 June 2025:

• about 90% (31,300) were in home-based care (foster care, relative/kinship care and other home-based care)
• about 3 in 5 (61% or 21,200) children were aged 5–14 years
• disability status was known for 86% (29,600) of children in care, and 27% (9,500) of all children in care had a disability
• the rate of children living in inner and outer regional (10 and 12 per 1,000) and remote and very remote (12 and 15 per 1,000) were around twice as high as those living in major cities (5.1 per 1,000) 
• most (92% or 32,000) were on a care and protection order.

Sources: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data tables 4.4, 4.5 and 4.7

Characteristics of children in long-term out-of-home care

In 2024–25, 72% (24,800) of children in out-of-home care had been in care for 2 years or more, known as long-term care. Of these:

• about 67% (16,600) were aged 5–14 years
• about 82% (20,300) were on a long-term guardianship arrangement.

Sources: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data tables 4.2 and 4.5

Has the rate of children in out-of-home care changed over time?

Between 30 June 2021 and 30 June 2025, the rate of children in out-of-home care decreased from 8.2 to 7.5 per 1,000. 

Source: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table T1.1 

From 2020–21 to 2024–25, the number of children admitted and discharged from care changed somewhat each year, but the overall rate remained relatively stable at about 2.0 per 1,000.

Sources: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data tables T4.1

What types of carers are there?

Carers are people who have been assessed and approved by the relevant department or agency to provide care in their private households for children in funded and non-funded out-of-home care.

The main types of carers include:

• foster carers who are not related to the child
• relative/kinship carers who are related to or know the child
• long-term guardianship carers who may or may not be related to the child
• respite carers who provide short-term accommodation where the intention is for the child to return to their prior residence (out-of-home care or family home).

How many children were placed in unique carer households?

Reporting of the total number of unique carer households can give insight into the total number of children placed in the household, regardless of the placement type, as some carer households might be approved/authorised to provide more than one care type.

It also allows information about carer households that provide placements other than foster or relative/kinship care to be included in the count.

As at 30 June 2025 there were about 19,700 unique carer households with a placement. Of these:

• more than 3 in 5 (62% or 12,200) had one child placed with them
• about 37% (7,200) had 2–4 children placed with them
• 1.5% (300) had 5 or more children placed with them.

Source: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table 5.2

How many children were placed with foster or relative/kinship carers?

As at 30 June 2025 there were about 5,900 foster carer households with a placement. Of these:

• almost two-thirds (56% or 3,300) had one child placed with them
• about 42% (2,500) had 2–4 children placed with them
• 2.1% (125) had 5 or more children placed with them.

As at 30 June 2025 there were about 13,700 relative/kinship carer households with one or more children placed with them. Of these:

• two-thirds (66% or 9,000) had one child placed with them
• one-third (33% or 4,500) had 2–4 children placed with them
• 1.0% (135) had 5 or more children placed with them.

Source: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table 5.2

The prevalence of households with multiple child placements might reflect that, in many jurisdictions, priority is given to placing siblings together.

How many children were new or repeat clients?

In 2024–25, 137,100 children aged under 18 years came into contact with the child protection system. Of these, the majority (75% or 103,500) of children were repeat (which also includes continuing) clients.

Sources: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table 1.1

Repeat clients are children who have previously been and/or who have continuously remained in contact with the child protection system. These include children:

• who have been the subject of an investigation
• were discharged from any type of national care and protection order or funded out-of-home care placement (excluding respite placements lasting less than 7 days)
• whose earliest order and/or placement in the current reporting period is part of a preceding continuous episode of care.

Data on new and repeat clients provide some insight into the extent to which new clients, or those with prior involvement, come into contact with the child protection system, and whether this differs across the system components.

In 2024–25:

• More than half (64% or 59,100) of the 92,600 children who were subjects of investigations for alleged child maltreatment notifications were repeat clients.

• Most (97% or 52,300) of the 54,100 children on a care and protection order were repeat clients.
• Most (96% or 40,900) of the 42,500 children placed in out-of-home care were repeat clients.

Source: CPA 2024–25: Insights, data table 1.1

Refer to the Appendices for more information on the child protection system.

How safe were children in care?

Sometimes children in out-of-home care can be the subject of further abuse, for example, by their carer or another person in the household or care facility.

More information on the safety and abuse of children in care will be included in the report over the coming months.

How were children supported to transition out of care?

To support children to find stable long-term care arrangements, child protection departments undertake permanency planning for children in out-of-home care.

Permanency outcomes include:

• reunifying children with their families
• placing children in a third-party care arrangement
• placing children on long-term guardianship or custody orders
• adoption.

More information on children’s transition from out-of-home care will be included in the report over the coming months.