Child Support Scheme Australia: Public Policy Analysis and Impact

This essay provides a comprehensive overview of the Child Support Scheme in Australia, a public policy designed to ensure financial support for children of divorced or separated parents. It begins by defining public policy and then delves into the specifics of the Child Support Scheme, highlighting its history, including its introduction in 1988 and subsequent reforms. The essay explores the scheme's objectives, which include addressing child poverty and ensuring shared parental responsibility for child maintenance. It examines the impact of the scheme on Australian society, including its effects on divorced parents, children, and societal perceptions of parental roles. The essay also discusses the various changes and adjustments made to the scheme over time, such as changes to income calculations and parental care arrangements, and their effectiveness. Overall, the essay offers a detailed analysis of the Child Support Scheme's evolution, its impact on the Australian community, and its role in shaping family law and social welfare policies.

ESSAY

TABLE OF CONTENT
TOPIC..............................................................................................................................................1
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................1
About Child Support Scheme Australia......................................................................................1
History and reason behind the public policy (Child Support Scheme Australia)........................1
Impact of the change within Australian society because of chosen public policy......................2
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................3
REREFENCES................................................................................................................................4

TOPIC
Child Support Scheme Australia (Public policy)
INTRODUCTION
Public policy can be defined as a process through which government translate their
political vision into actions or programs in order to deliver outcomes, desired changes with the
society or real world (Skinner, Cook and Sinclair, 2017). These public polices helps the
government in addressing needs and requirements of their citizens in many ways. In order to
benefit citizens of a country, government has introduced various kinds of schemes to the
schemes as public polices for the benefit of their citizens. Each public policy or scheme is
developed targeting a particular desired citizen in order to fulfill their needs. One of the most
important public policy of Australia Child Support Scheme. This scheme focusses on providing
support to children whose parents have been divorced or are living separately. This essay will
focus on History and reason behind the public policy and Impact of the change within Australian
society.
MAIN BODY
About Child Support Scheme Australia
Child support scheme is a scheme which is run by Australian government, Human service
department. This scheme makes sure that parents share all the cost of supporting their children as
well as also make sure that all the needs and requirements of children are being fulfilled
(Luetjens, Mintrom and t Hart, 2019). This scheme makes sure that even if parents get divorced,
they share their cost of raising their children just like if they would not have been separated. This
means even if parents do not live with their children, they are required to support their children.
History and reason behind the public policy (Child Support Scheme Australia)
Child support scheme was introduced in 1988 in response to the concern about court
order adequacy for child maintenance and all the difficulties that occurs in maintenance
collection in Australia. Australian government was also concern about poverty of children and
women after separation. This was only increasing government expenditure for children
maintenance while the other parent did not contribute within upbringing of their children. This
was one of main reason because of which this scheme was introduced so that child maintenance
responsibility can be shared by both the parents (Bandara and et.al., 2018). This shared
responsibility of divorced parents for supporting their children was important to be focused on.
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So, for this in 1988 child support scheme was introduced. Initially in 1989 Australian taxation
office was given responsibility to assess how much child support should be paid. They were also
given responsibility of collecting and enforcing child support payments from both the parents.
However, today this scheme is administered by department of social service and delivered by
department of human service.
This scheme is majorly dependent upon principle of parental responsibility for overall
financial wellbeing of the children specifically when parents are separated. This scheme helps in
reducing involvement of government by allocating overall cost of raising children in separate
families between government and parents. Initially when this scheme was introduced child
support was completely based upon paying percentage of overall income of the parents and if
number of children increases then this percentage also increased (Reddihough and et al, 2016).
However, in this an exempt amount was excluded from paying parents income before calculation
of child support. Income of receiving parents was only taken into account if their overall income
amount was significantly higher than exempt amount. Time to time changes within this scheme
was brought and this child support scheme was reformed.
In 1993 an enquiry was conducted in order to operations and effectiveness of the scheme.
However, this scheme was support and continued but there are various kinds of flaws or
problems within this scheme within its operations and designing because of which few changes
within this scheme were done such as: increase in exempt income amount for self- support,
introduction of $260 a year minimum child support liability and many more. In 2003 again an
enquiry was conducted in which it was identified that separated fathers wanted more day to day
care of their children. It was becoming one of the main concerns of this scheme. In order to
overcome this challenge, it was recommended that presumptions of family law regarding shared
care. Between 2006 to 2008 this scheme was reformed again and again three times. In 2006
amount of liability care was increased from 25 percent to 30 percent. In 2007 arrangement was
done in order to reduce parents dispute for child’s paternity (Ranasinghe and et al., 2017). In
2008 proper legal arrangements were made to provide better legal protection for parents who
want to make agreements between themselves. These continuous arrangement or changes within
the scheme has helped in reducing problems or flaws within the scheme and improve child
support in a better manner.
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Impact of the change within Australian society because of chosen public policy
Child support scheme Australia has impacted the society in many ways and has also helped
in bringing various kinds of changes within the society. Before this scheme was introduced
divorced parents were not able to take care of their parents in a better manner because of which
future of the child was getting affecting. This scheme was introduced so that support to the child
can be provided in the best possible manner. All the changes within this scheme till not has been
brought in such a manner that it works in best interest of the children. This scheme has impacted
the society in many ways and has also helped in bringing changes within it. This scheme has
helped in developing a sense of responsibility within divorced parents so that they can recognize
their responsibility and focus on taking care of their children (Saunders and et al., 2019). This
scheme has impacted the society and has brought gender equality and has helped in enhancing
roles of parents and their responsibilities towards their parents. For children this scheme has only
been beneficial so that they can be supported whereas for divorced parents it has increased
responsibilities on their shoulder so that they cannot run away from their responsibilities towards
their children. It has majorly impacted thinking and mentality of the people of the society as
initially after getting divorced only a single parent used to take responsibility of the child and
other parent did not. With the help of this child support scheme thinking of the society has been
impacted. This scheme has also helped parents to balance their professional and personal life.
Work responsibility of single parent who owns main care of the child is reduced so that they can
focus on taking care of their children and peruse their careers in a better manner. Earning
capacity of the parents is also taken care off so that care of child does not become a burden on
those parents.
CONCLUSION
From the above essay it has been summarized that there are various kinds of public
policies that are developed for benefit of the citizens of the country. Child Support Scheme is
one of the public policies that has been developed by government of Austral in order to support
children whose parents have been divorced. It has been analysed that in order to increase the
effectivity of the policy various kinds of time to time changes within the policy with time have
been done within the scheme so that child can be supported in a better manner as well as both the
single parents can focus on their care as well. This scheme has helped in bringing changes within
the society as well.
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REREFENCES
Books and Journals
Bandara, W., and et.al., 2018. Enterprise business process management in the public sector: The
case of the Department of Human Services (DHS) Australia. Journal of Information
Technology Teaching Cases. 8(2). pp.217-231.
Luetjens, J.C., Mintrom, M. and t Hart, P., 2019. Public Policy Success: Lessons From Australia
and New Zealand. ANU Press.
Ranasinghe, T., and et al., 2017. Parents’ experiences in registering with and accessing funding
under the National Disability Insurance Scheme for early intervention services for
children with developmental disabilities. Journal of paediatrics and child health. 53(1).
pp.26-32.
Reddihough, D.S., and et al, 2016. The National Disability Insurance Scheme: a time for real
change in Australia. Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology. 58. pp.66-70.
Saunders, P., and et al., 2019. Child deprivation in Australia: A child‐focused
approach. Australian Journal of Social Issues. 54(1). pp.4-21.
Skinner, C., Cook, K. and Sinclair, S., 2017. The potential of child support to reduce lone mother
poverty: Comparing population survey data in Australia and the UK. Journal of Poverty
and Social Justice. 25(1). pp.79-94.
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