Child Protection Policies in NSW

This assignment explores child protection policies in New South Wales, Australia. It highlights the gap between policy implementation and desired outcomes, advocating for a focus on both physical and psychological well-being in policy development. The analysis aims to increase understanding of child protection practices in NSW.

Running head: CHILD PROTECTION IN NSW
MSW Qualifying
Child protection in NSW
Name of Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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CHILD PROTECTION IN NSW
Executive Summary
The health, safety and the wellbeing of the young people and children is considered as one of the
prime concerns of the community. There is an increasing number of child abuse cases in
Australia, which shows that it is important to design suitable child protection policies. This is
because of the fact that such incidences have long lasting damage on the children. The child
abuse victims often show behavioral issues in the late stages of life and they may have difficulty
in academic life. One of the key issues of the child protection policy is their structure. They give
more focus on the child protection activities, rather than their all-round development. The
children should get a good standard of living and they should have a bright future. They should
not be neglected and be subjected to abuse. The wellbeing of a child is considered as the
amalgamation of social, physical and psychological enhancement that would help them to lead a
quality life. The Child Wellbeing and Child protection- NSW Interagency Guidelines in NSW
has laid down guidelines for promoting the development of the children residing in the area. This
paper recommendation that there should be implementation of public health model which
provides 360-degree development of the child.

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CHILD PROTECTION IN NSW
Scope of the briefing
Australia is one of the most developed countries but however there are incidences of
child abuses and child neglect (Kempe et al., 2013). There are several cases of child
maltreatment such as physical abuse, emotional maltreatment, sexual abuse, neglect and
exposure to family violence (Kempe et al., 2013). These kinds of child abuse cases damage the
psychological and physiological well being of the children. There are instances when the victims
of child abuse suffer from depression, anxiety and have difficulty in concentrating (Christian,
2015). The organization Help Kids would help in successful protection of children in NSW
region. The focus of the organization is to work in this domain and work towards the reduction
of child abuse cases in NSW region. The purpose of this body is to work collaboratively with the
interagency partners in the process of child protection process in NSW. This would make sure
that the organization would help in strengthening the facilities that help in the protection and
development of the child well being in the region.
The organization would cater to the children between the age of 3 years to 18 years who
are living in NSW region. The organization finds that the child abuse and child neglect are often
caused by several reasons. The issue is of national importance as there are many cases of child
abuse all over Australia (Kempe et al., 2013). However, this special initiative would be
implemented in the NSW region only. The currency is important for proper implementation of
the government board policies (Zuiderwijk & Janssen, 2014). The social inclusion is important
for children as it seeks for equal opportunities for this age group and aims to enhance their living
conditions.

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The children are the most vulnerable group as compared to other age groups. This is
because of the fact that they are in social, physical and psychological development stage (Kempe
et al., 2013). They are unable to express their needs, wants and desires as done by the adults or
people belong from other age groups (Brown, Manning & Stykes, 2015). As opined by Jones and
Lowman (2017), the child well-being is considered as the multidimensional concept that is done
by incorporating the psychological, social and physical dimensions. The well being of a child
considers an optimum quality of life and providing them their basic rights.
Current policy situation
The current policy on child protection aims to work towards the betterment of children.
The Children and Young Person (Care and Protection) Act 1998 makes sure that good care of
the young people and the children is taken by the families, agencies and government through the
process of partnerships (Community.nsw.gov.au, 2017). The Child Wellbeing and Child
protection- NSW Interagency Guidelines helps the population by providing them practical
guidance regarding interagency cooperation in the field of child protection. These guidelines
support the collaborative practice of supporting the child protection measures (Kempe et al.,
2013). These guidelines are applicable for both the non-government as well as government
agencies (Wiener et al., 2015). This program aims to provide streamlined child protection
system, coordinated system of shared information and establishment of different child wellbeing
units. This policy makes sure that the child has the right to participate in the decisions that are
being made to improve his or her quality of life. The judgment should be done after giving
adequate information to him. The child should be given adequate information about the
outcomes of the decisions that he or she would be undertaking.

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CHILD PROTECTION IN NSW
The Child Wellbeing and Child protection- NSW Interagency Guidelines focus on the
collaboration on the interagency partners and the promotion of safety, wellbeing and the growth
of the children. This policy also helps in the reporting of the unborn child and respond to the
unmet needs of the children. These policies also help in the protection of the children from
physical abuse and neglect when it occurs in a practical scenario.
The issue of child protection should be addressed the local and international level. The
Australian Government should take the responsibility of protecting the well-being of children
(Parton, 2014). The issue should be addressed more at the local level where it is possible to make
a difference. The activists would also be able to work at the grassroot level and hence the policy
can be best implemented at this level (Bartlett et al., 2016). The current policy impacts the child
protection across all the territory jurisdictions in and around Australia. The policies aim to make
the children participate in the decision-making process (Aifs.gov.au ,2017). This often leads to
the fact that young people and children are involved in the process of decision making activities.
This is done as per their maturity and age(Bartlett et al., 2016). This is also done after making
sure that the child would be able to form as well as express their viewpoints and these are given
serious consideration. These policies make sure that the child wins the case and he gets fair
treatment across all matters.
Key issues of consideration
The current child protection policy of Australia emphasizes on child protection activities
just for providing response for abuse. The aspect of public health model to child care and
protection is often missed from the policies (Bartlett et al., 2016). The public health model would
give all round development for children and not only protect them from abuse. The current

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system relies only on the protection aspects of children and overlooks the overall improvement
of the children (O'Dwyer, Cahalane & Pelican-Kelly, 2016). The public health model relies on
the health, education, interests and availabilityof basic amenities to the children. It is important
to concentrate on early intervention so that the children have a good quality of life (Bartlett et al.,
2016). A health system is considered as beyond hospitals and the protection of children should
be more than mere “statutory child protection service”. The child protection services in Australia
are unable to provide a suitable response to all the vulnerable children and their respective
families (Sun & Buys, 2013).
It is advisable that the public health approach places greater emphasis on family
assistance so that the abuse of children can be prevented (Sun & Buys, 2013). It should aim to
involve professionals, wider community and families for enhancing the child protection and
recognition of the fact that children are responsibility of all. The objective of this program would
also include protection against child abuse and find appropriate ways to handle the issue (Bartlett
et al., 2016). The country should adopt a national leadership as well as common goal for child
protection activities.
Recommendations
There are several states as well as territory governments which have implemented
reforms towards child protection systems but they have not been fully implemented in the current
scenario. It is important to coordinate with the Australian Government programs and seek an
early intervention. The income support is also important as it would help in the bright future of
the children. The national leadership should focus on the social policies pertaining to research,
data and information sharing across all the sectors. The indigenous children should be supported

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CHILD PROTECTION IN NSW
and kept safe within their communities and families. The risk factors for neglect and child abuse
should be addressed. The children should be encouraged to live within their known people and
family members. The awareness regarding sexual abuse and exploitation should be done so that
the children are aware about these. The children below three years should be monitored more
since they have the risks of injuries and neglect. The organizations operating in these sectors
should opt for financial assistance from the business sector. The corporate sector is willing to
devote time and resources to various social causes.
The Government of Australia should focus more on the involvement of the children in the
decision making process. I feel that the child protection policy should be formulated after
consulting well with the representatives of this age group. The NSW government should hold
more awareness camps that would raise more awareness regarding the matters of child abuse
including sexual exploitation of the children.
Conclusions
The child protection in NSW is serious issue and should be given utmost importance.
Children are considered as the future of the nation and hence they should be given a better
standard of living. There are several policies of child protection in the states but they have not
been properly implemented so far. It is important that the overall development of the children is
emphasized on. The protection of the child should not be the only consideration of the policies;
instead it should focus on the physical as well as psychological well-being of the children. This
paper would enhance the knowledge regarding the child protection policies in NSW, Australia.

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References
Australian Institute of Family Studies. (2017). Australian Institute of Family Studies. Retrieved 7
September 2017, from http://aifs.gov.au
Bartlett, S., Hart, R., Satterthwaite, D., de la Barra, X., & Missair, A. (2016). Cities for children:
children's rights, poverty and urban management. Routledge.
Brown, S. L., Manning, W. D., & Stykes, J. B. (2015). Family structure and child well‐being:
Integrating family complexity. Journal of Marriage and Family, 77(1), 177-190.
Christian, C. W., & Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect. (2015). The evaluation of suspected child
physical abuse. Pediatrics, 135(5), e1337-e1354.
Community.nsw.gov.au, 2017. Community Services. (2017). Community.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 7
September 2017, from http://www.community.nsw.gov.au
Jones, W., & Lowman, M. (2017). Child Well‐Being. A Practical Guide to Analytics for Governments:
Using Big Data for Good, 11-33.
Kempe, C. H., Silverman, F. N., Steele, B. F., Droegemueller, W., & Silver, H. K. (2013). The battered-
child syndrome. In C. Henry Kempe: A 50 Year Legacy to the Field of Child Abuse and
Neglect (pp. 23-38). Springer Netherlands.
O'Dwyer, P., Cahalane, S., & Pelican-Kelly, S. (2016). Evaluation of a co-location initiative: a Public
Health Nurse working in a social work department to improve child protection practice. The Irish
Social Worker.
Parton, N. (2014). The politics of child protection: Contemporary developments and future directions.
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Sun, J., & Buys, N. (2013). Child abuse, neglect and maltreatment health service in Australia: A
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Zuiderwijk, A., & Janssen, M. (2014). Open data policies, their implementation and impact: A
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