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Learning from overseas on advocacy
The Commission hosts focus forums throughout the year. Presenters at the October forum were Catherine Moynihan, Youth Advocate, Legal Aid and Rob Ryan, Department of Communities, Assistant Regional Directors, South Region, Child Safety, Youth and Families. Both presenters were recipients of a Churchill Fellowship Award which supported them in further studies in the areas of interest. For Catherine this is advocacy and legal representation for children and young people in out of care and for Rob, training for child protection professionals.
In researching advocacy and legal representation for children, Catherine found that several aspects of her researched influenced her recommendations. These included a policy discussion in the UK about the right to advocate for young people in care that has been continuing over the last decade. The policy discussion has lead to the development of specialist training course in advocacy as well as the Independent Person advocacy position to assist young people in care to make complaints, Catherine acknowledged that while some of her recommendations have funding difficulties that create challenges in a tight fiscal environment, reform was as much about cultural attitudes to participation, advocacy and legal representation that can be integrated into a range of reform frameworks already in existence.
- Ms Moynihan’s Churchill Trust paper (PDF, 1.61MB)
Left to right Assistant Commissioner Barry Salmon with Rob Ryan and Catherine Moynihan.
Rob recognises that child abuse investigation and intervention is a high risk area in the public service and there is a need to identify the issue of managing this risk as a growing concern for managers who are faced with legislative change, financial constraints and scrutiny from the broader community and across non government and government agencies.
In his paper Rob outlines the Australasian Statutory Child Protection and Learning Development Group which consists of representatives with learning and development responsibilities in child protection from all Australian states and territories and New Zealand.
In addition to these representatives on the Group, the Australian Centre of Child Protection, South Australia and the Australian Institute of Family Studies are also represented at the Group's twice yearly meetings. The Group's aim includes facilitating the development of training resources, discussing approaches that work and don't work in each jurisdiction, avoiding duplication of effort and discussing strategies to address shared problems.
The common core skill child protection professional require include effective communication and engagement with young people and families, young person development, safeguarding and promoting the welfare of young people, supporting transitions, multi agency and integrated working and information sharing.
View Rob's full report at http://www.churchilltrust.com.au/fellows/detail/3383/robert+ryan
Last Updated: November 1, 2010
