Using Past Practice to Inform Current Policy N. Wallace– Care Leavers Australia Network.
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Transcript of Using Past Practice to Inform Current Policy N. Wallace– Care Leavers Australia Network.
Using Past Practice to Inform Current Policy
N. Wallace– Care Leavers Australia Network
Care Leavers Australia Network (CLAN)
• Support • Advocacy• Research• Training
• CLAN has close to 1000 members• CLAN was founded in 2000 by two Care Leavers Dr
Joanna Penglase OAM and Leonie Sheedy OAM• CLAN’s oldest member is 94 years old. • CLAN’s youngest member is 19 years old.
Why is preparation to leave care needed?
• Childhood is the most pivotal stage of development: – Develop emotionally – attachment, bonding, trust– Learning – stages of development, schooling– Vulnerability - abuse
• Trauma from the family unit being broken• Education might be disrupted• Lack of support• Trouble with relationships
CLAN Research
• 2008 Survey “A Terrible way to grow up: The experiences of institutional care and it’s outcomes for care leavers in Australia”
CLAN research• 2010 Survey “Struggling to keep it together”
• Thank you to Frank Golding and Benita Rupan for collating these results and publishing the report
Struggling to keep it together
METHODOLOGY• 67 questions:
– Tick box– Invitation to make additional comments
• Encouraged to seek support from CLAN’s counsellor
• No fixed deadline– Prompt response: 80 responses in 1 day– 577 responses in total
Struggling to keep it together
DEMOGRAPHICS• 56% Females• 85% > 50yrs of age• 37% are married or de-facto• 80% reside in NSW, VIC, or QLD
Leaving Care Statistics
16yrs of age was the most common age to
leave care
Leaving care statistics
0
50
100
150
200
250
18%
30%
16%
4%sw
16%
7% 5%
Education:• 52% did not complete year 10
4%
WHEN YOU FINALLY LEFT ‘CARE’ TO RETURN TO THE WIDER COMMUNITY,
WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING HAPPENED?
Returned to parent/s
Suitable accomodation arranged
Spent first night with strangers
Reasonable supply of clothing and personal requirements
Had a job to go to
Continued schooling
If you had brothers and sisters you all stayed together
Live with other relatives
Spent first night alone
Spent first night on streets
Sum of money to tide over for the first few months
People who looked after you said you were welcome back
0 50 100 150 200 250
8%
9%
10%
11%
21%
7%
7%
4%
7%
12%
2%• 21% returned to their
parents• A combined 22%
spent the first night after leaving care alone, on the streets, or with strangers
• 8% continued schooling
• 9% had a job to go to
Education• Schooling was ignored and not properly attended to• School disrupted from moving from one placement to the
next• Disadvantages from lack of education:
– Literacy– Career opportunities– Socio-economic status
• Recommendations for the current Child Protection System– Continual stability of education– Emotionally stable environments to focus on schooling
Avenues after leaving care• Children were carelessly discharged from care:
– Alone– On the streets– With strangers
“No clothes, no money no assistance”• Others were sent back to abusive or neglectful
parents“I went back to the same alcoholic parents that I was
taken from – nothing had changed”“I was returned to my abusive mother where her
boyfriends attempted to molest me”
Recommendations for the current child protection system
• Consider child’s wishes• Life skills training• Job training• Transition to leave care• Ongoing support after leaving care
Why life skills? • Things that parents teach that children in
care miss out on: – Forming attachments– Developing relationships– Trusting others– Giving and receiving love
Intergenerational effects
Orphanage/Children's Home/YouthTraining/Detention Centre
Foster Care
Adopted
State Ward
Court Order
18%
17%%
18%
28%8%
19%
17% of respondents stated that their parents or grandparents were in the care system. 13% have had their own children or grandchildren placed in care. The following graph shows the break up of this 13%
Intergenerational Effects
• 54 respondents commented that they chose not to have children
• 12% reported they have difficulties forming and maintaining relationships.
• Being in care is a risk factor for their children being in care.
• Continual counselling to address trauma, trust and attachment issues
• A childhood in care makes the child no less valuable
The legacy of leaving care unprepared
• Social Inclusion Board (2010):– Multiple disadvantages: those who fall into at
least 3 of 6 named categories– Entrenched disadvantage: Experiencing these 3 or
more disadvantages for 2 years or more• The CLAN survey covered the 6 named
disadvantages – the following are the results
Disadvantage 1
• People who live in a household where no one is employed:– 59% of respondents reported that there was no
person in paid employment in their household– 20% of these unemployed for longer than 2 years
Disadvantage 2
• People in the bottom 30% of equivalent household disposable income who would not be able to raise $2000 within a week: – 53% said they could not raise $2000 in a
week
Disadvantage 3
• People who are able to get support in times of crisis from people living outside the household which may impact adversely on their ability to participate in the community:– Only 36% said they could get help from outside
their household
Disadvantage 4
• People whose self-assessed physical and mental health status as either fair, poor or very poor: – 60% reported their physical health as being
fair, poor, or very poor. – 57% reported their mental health as being
fair, poor, or very poor.
Disadvantage 5
• People aged 20yrs or more who had not completed year 10 or higher at school: – 22% had no schooling beyond primary level– 52% did not complete year 10 at high school
Disadvantage 6
• People who felt safe or unsafe at home alone after dark:– 19% of respondents felt unsafe or very unsafe at
home after dark.– This is compared with 7% of the Australian
population
Other Disadvantages
• 14% never married• 52% now live alone• 54% no not own their place of residence• 12% of respondents have serious psychological
problems stemming from their childhood in care• 15% have trouble trusting those in authority• A combined 10% have or have had a drug or
alcohol problem
Conclusion
• Care leavers suffer multiple disadvantages, social exclusion and isolation
• Many of these disadvantages could have been avoided had they had proper preparation to leave care.
• Current policy needs to be adapted to provide adequate preparation, support and assistance for children to successfully leave care
Summary of Recommendations
• Focus on Care Leavers who have recently left care and Care Leavers who have young children – Intergenerational effects needs to be seen as a risk factor
• Comprehensive guide on Children’s Rights, phone numbers, support agencies, policies and procedures
• Ongoing Counselling• Life Skills, Job Skills and Education
SO LET’S LEARN FROM OUR HISTORY!