ac.care

1. Legislation in Out of Home Care

Children come in to care for a number of reasons. In South Australian, The Children and Young People (Safety) Act 2017 a child can be removed from a household where a child is at significant risk of harm. Under this legislation, a child or young person will be taken to be at risk if:

• they have suffered harm (of a kind against which a child or young person is ordinarily protected); or there is a likelihood that they will suffer harm (of a kind against which a child or young person is ordinarily protected); or there is a likelihood that the child or young person will be removed from the State (whether by their parent or guardian or by some other person) for the purpose of:
• they have or would be subject to a medical procedure that would be unlawful if performed in South  Australia (including female genital mutilation)
• they are to be married or, to take part in an activity, or an action deemed an offence in South  Australia. Harm is defined as physical harm or psychological harm (whether caused by an act or omission) includes such harm caused by sexual, physical, mental or emotional abuse or neglect.

In South Australia, Section 77 of The Children and Young People (Safety) Act 2017 provides a statutory basis for creating a temporary placement in an emergency with carers who are not approved, under certain conditions. Temporary placements must not exceed a period of three months. Specific Child Only carers are to be assessed by an agency assessment team within a three month period to ensure that the relevant legislation is not in breach.[1]

*You can click on the names of the legislation to view the documents online. It is ideal to read through these in order to have an good understanding of legislation that underpins policies and practices in Out of Home Care.

[1] Children and Young People (Safet) Act 2017, South Australian Government