State care reform Bill passes second reading

Social Development Minister Anne Tolley says that the first stage of major state care reforms has passed its second reading in Parliament.

As part of the radical overhaul of care and protection, the first raft of legislative changes in the Children, Young Persons and Their Families (Advocacy, Workforce and Age Settings) Amendment Bill will:

• Extend the age of state care and protection to a young person’s 18th birthday
• Ensure the views of children and young people are taken into account as part of decision making at an individual level and in the development of services and policy
• Support the establishment of an independent youth advocacy service, and
• Enable the broader range of professionals with specialist skills who will widen the expertise within the new model to perform some functions under the Act. Social workers would still be the main professionals responsible for carrying out these functions.

The Government recently announced that further legislation is to be introduced before the end of the year to enable young people to remain in care or return to care up until the age of 21, with transition support and advice available up to 25.

“We are introducing bold reforms to ensure that we have a truly child-centred system which delivers the life outcomes that vulnerable young people deserve,” says Mrs Tolley.

“They must have a say in the decisions that affect their lives, and their voices need to be heard as we develop a completely new operating model for our care system as part of the new Ministry for Vulnerable Children, Oranga Tamariki.

“We are at the beginning of a multi-year transformation process. This is not simply another restructure. We must take the time to get this right and this legislation will ensure that children and young people are involved at every step in the process.”

Notes to editors:

As part of the wider package of state care reforms, a new operating model, under the new Ministry for Vulnerable Children, Oranga Tamariki is being developed, to begin in April 2017, and unlike CYF it will not simply focus on crisis management, but will ensure better long-term life outcomes for children and young people in care. This includes:

• A new child-centred operating model with a greater focus on harm and trauma prevention and early intervention. It will provide a single point of accountability for the long-term wellbeing of vulnerable children, with the voice of the child represented in planning and strategy. A social investment approach using actuarial valuations and evidence of what works will identify the best way of targeting early interventions, to ensure that vulnerable children and families receive the care and support they need, when they need it.
• Direct purchasing of vital services such as health, education and counselling support to allow funding to follow the child, so that these young people can gain immediate access to assistance.  
• A stronger focus on reducing the over-representation of Maori young people in the system. Currently, 6 out of ten kids in care are Maori.
• Legislation (going through Parliament at the moment) will establish an independent youth advocacy service to ensure that the voices of children and young people are heard in the design of systems and services.
• Intensive targeted support for caregivers, including some increased financial assistance and better access to support services. For the first time, National Care Standards will be introduced so that there is a clear expectation for the standard and quality of care in placement homes. A new trauma-informed Professional Practice Framework will also be introduced for staff.

This will support the five core services of the new model – prevention, intensive intervention, care support, transition support and a youth justice system aimed at preventing offending and reoffending.

Budget 2016 invested $347 million to support the transformation to the new operating model and for cost pressures.