Children in care

Monitoring the quality assurance strategy in the out-of-home care system

page content: Client care standards | Placement management standards | Care giver and care environment standards | Human resource standards | Organisational standards

The Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 allows the Minister for Community Services to determine performance standards for community service organisations providing family and out- of-home care services.

On 23 April 2007, the registration standards were published and came into effect late May 2007. These registration standards replaced the previous minimum standards for residential and home-based care and the draft family services standards.

The eight registration standards apply equally to family services and out of home care services and have three components:

• A statement of rationale
• Practice outcomes
• Performance criteria

Whilst the majority of performance criteria apply to both family services and out of home care services, some are service specific.

Specifically, in relation to out of home care services, the standards set out the minimum requirements for the Department of Human Services to fulfil its duty of care to children in the custody and or guardianship of the State and apply equally to out of home care services run by the Department.

Community Service Organisations will undertake an internal review (ie, self assessment of its performance against the registration standards) in the years that they are not undertaking an external review (undertaken by an independent reviewer/assessor for the purposes of re-registration).

From the external review, the Office of the Child Safety Commissioner will receive copies of the performance summary and agreed action plan for each community service organisation; a regional summary of key issues; and a statewide report. The Office may also receive information from the internal review on a case by case basis, or if the Minister requests the Commissioner to investigate a specific agency.

For further information on the review cycle or the registration review tool aimed to support internal and external reviews please refer to the Department of Human Services Everychild Everychance website.