Fewer children are vulnerable

Too many children have childhoods that make it unlikely they will thrive, belong and achieve. We help build stronger families and support parents to do better for their children. For those children who need it, we provide protection.

Improving children’s lives

Vulnerable Children

As noted in the Cross-agency Leadership section, comprehensive changes are under way to improve protection for vulnerable children. These changes include activities set out in the Children’s Action Plan and the establishment of the Vulnerable Children’s Board.

Strategy for children and young people in care

We are leading the development of a cross-agency strategy to ensure children in state care get the services they need, not only from Child, Youth and Family, but also from the Ministries of Health and Education and other government agencies.

We have developed a draft outcomes and indicators framework in consultation with other government agencies and key non-government and iwi organisations.

The new strategy is strongly child-centred and marks a shift in focus from services to outcomes.

Working together to keep children safe

All children belong in families that love and nurture them. When adults do not care for and protect their children, the Ministry steps in to ensure vulnerable children and young people are looked after. 

Notifications

In 2012/2013, we received 148,209 notifications of child abuse or neglect, including the Police family violence referrals. This is a 3 per cent decrease from last year’s total of 152,800 notifications.

This year, 63,120 notifications (42.6 per cent) needed further action to determine the response and social work services needed. Last year, 61,074 notifications (40 per cent) required further action.

As a result of further action, we identified 21,778 findings of substantiated abuse. This is compared to 21,525 in 2011/2012. Of these:

• 12,072 (55.4 per cent) were emotional abuse findings
• 5,104 (23.4 per cent) were neglect findings
• 3,190 (14.6 per cent) were physical abuse findings
• 1,412 (6.5 per cent) were sexual abuse findings.

Of the notifications received, 176 related to an incident of smacking with no other concerns, compared to 277 in the previous year.

• A correction has been made - please refer to the Erratum

Care and Protection Family Group Conferences

Care and Protection Family Group Conferences formally bring together family/whānau and professionals to talk about concerns for a child or young person’s safety or wellbeing. The number of Care and Protection Family Group Conferences was 8,024 this year, compared to 8,246 last year.

• A correction has been made - please refer to the Erratum

Children in out-of-home care

At 30 June 2013, 4,960 children were in the custody of the Chief Executive and 3,844 were in care and protection placements outside of their home. Of those in out-of-home care, 55 per cent identified as Māori.

In 2012/2013, 37 children and young people who were in the custody of the Chief Executive and placed with Child, Youth and Family-approved caregivers were found to have been abused by their caregiver. This number represents 0.7 per cent of all children and young people in custody[1]. Thirty Child, Youth and Family-approved caregivers were involved in these cases. This compares with 30 children and young people and 26 Child, Youth and Family caregivers in 2010/2011 and 23 children and young people and 20 caregivers in 2011/2012.

Home for Life

Stable, continuous care helps meet a child’s need for safety and support. This is important for healthy child development. Home for Life is a package of support to encourage families to bring a child into their home permanently, giving the child the stability and security they need. In 2012/2013, 440 children and young people in care gained a Home for Life. Of these, 190 were under five years old. In 2011/2012, 489 children and young people gained a Home for Life and of these, 235 were under five years old.

Our evaluation confirmed that Home for Life is addressing factors known to prevent children in Child, Youth and Family care gaining a permanent home.

The right services for children in care

Gateway Assessments

Gateway Assessments cover the physical health, mental health and education needs of each child and young person engaged with Child, Youth and Family. This helps us to link them to the services they need. We have targeted assessments for children entering care, children already in care, and children identified through a Family Group Conference.

Between July 2012 and June 2013, 3,171 children and young people were referred to district health boards for a Gateway Assessment, and 2,248 received an assessment.

The Gateway Assessment service has been implemented at all 59 Child, Youth and Family sites and all 20 district health boards.

Mental health services

In 2011, we received more than $15 million over four years to purchase primary mental health services and intensive clinical support services to address the mental health or behavioural problems of children coming into our care. In 2012/2013, primary mental health services were established in a further 13 district health board areas. In addition, two Intensive Clinical Support Services were established in the central North Island and in the South Island. A further two are planned by July 2014.

Primary mental health services are now available in 19 of the 20 district health board areas.

Early childhood education

In 2011, we received more than $11 million over four years to subsidise the cost of early childhood education for children in our care aged 18 months to three years. As at 30 June 2013, 272 children in this age group were in early childhood education (74.3 per cent of those eligible). This compares with the national average of 63 per cent for 1–3 year olds.

Social workers on the frontline

New frontline social workers

In October 2011, the Government announced an extra 96 frontline Child, Youth and Family social workers. Their role is to work with families with complex issues and to give better support to foster parents. 

By 30 June 2013, an extra 96 social workers had been employed.

Social Workers and Youth Services in Schools

In 2011/2012, we began contracting for an extra 149 full-time social workers for primary and intermediate schools. In 2012/2013, we gained an additional 94 social workers for decile 1–3 primary and intermediate schools.

Youth Workers in Secondary Schools is one of the Prime Minister’s Youth Mental Health initiatives announced in 2012. This year we introduced nine youth workers across seven decile 1–3 secondary schools in South and West Auckland. We are also recruiting six youth workers for nine decile 1–3 secondary schools in Wellington and Hawke’s Bay.

By December 2013 131,000 children in 680 decile 1–3 schools will have access to a social worker.

Quality social work

In 2012/2013, we developed the new social work assessment framework and recording tool. This was implemented in September 2013.

The assessment tool is a key deliverable of Child, Youth and Family’s Strategic Plan Mā mātou mā tātou: Changing young lives and of the assessment, planning, implementation and review workstream under the Children’s Action Plan.

The new tool will significantly change social work practice by ensuring our staff understand the situation of every child or young person we work with. It is also designed to improve our staff’s focus on achieving results for children and young people from the first time they make contact.

Parenting support

Parents as First Teachers

The Parents as First Teachers (PAFT) programme educates and supports parents. It helps them to understand how their children develop and learn so they can help their children to reach their full potential. In 2012/2013, approximately 4,860 families were referred to the PAFT programme. Around the country, 137 PAFT parent educators visit families to connect them to each other, their community and relevant social services.

Family Start

In 2012/2013, we funded Family Start in 33 locations (including an Early Start site in Christchurch). This year we have concentrated on the quality of Family Start services by improving frontline capacity and introducing four new providers.

In the year to 30 June 2013, 4,796 families received services through Family Start or Early Start.

Strategies with Kids, Information for Parents

The Strategies with Kids, Information for Parents (SKIP) initiative strengthens community support for parents so that children are safe and nurtured. SKIP supports community groups through funding, training, mentoring and capability building.

This year, we distributed 1.3 million resources to parents via community groups, providing parents with many practical solutions to help them with positive parenting. Social media is becoming an increasingly important means of distributing information to parents.

The SKIP Facebook page reaches over 10,000 people every week.

Progress towards Better Public Services Result 4

We contribute towards achieving Better Public Services Result 4: Reduce the number of assaults on children.

During 2012/2013 we have been tracking our progress towards the target for this result:

• By 2017, reduce the number of children experiencing physical abuse by 5 per cent[2].

In the year to 30 June 2013, 3,031 children experienced substantiated physical abuse, a 2.5 per cent reduction from the June 2012 figure of 3,108 children[3].

• A correction has been made - please refer to the Erratum

2012–2015 Statement of Intent Performance Indicators

Fewer children are vulnerable

Intermediate Outcome – Fewer babies, children and young people are harmed

• A correction has been made - please refer to Erratum

Intermediate Outcome – More children are in safe, permanent care

Intermediate Outcome  – More children in care have improved health and wellbeing

Intermediate Outcome  – More children in care have improved health and wellbeing

1. Includes custody through care and protection, youth justice and other enactments.

2. This target was set in 2012

3. While the current reduction in the growth of substantiated physical abuse looks encouraging, it is too early to know whether this represents a sustainable downward trend.

4. A Home for Life placement occurs when a child is placed by Child, Youth and Family with a caregiver who is approved to offer a permanent home. Achieving a Home for Life occurs when the Chief Executive’s custody is discharged in favour of a permanent caregiver.

5. Data extracted as at 28 August 2013.

6. The priority is for all children and young people entering care to receive a Gateway Assessment. Not all children and young people entering care will have consent to be referred for an assessment. Without consent, a referral for an assessment cannot be made. In 2012/2013, we gained consent for 891 children and young people entering care to be referred for an assessment.

7. Data extracted as at 2 September 2013. Gateway Assessments were progressively implemented across all district health boards, with the last district health board commencing assessments from March 2013. The result therefore does not reflect volumes for a full year.

8. Orders made under sections 78, 101, 102, 110 and 114 of the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Act 1989.

9. This measure relates to the Strategies with Kids, Information for Parents (SKIP) initiative.

Erratum

The Ministry of Social Development has identified data errors in Child, Youth and Family’s official data that require correcting in the Annual Report. Whilst the errors are not material, the Ministry considers it prudent to release corrected versions of the relevant sections and these are set out below.

Working together to keep children safe

Notifications

In 2012/2013, we received 148,659 notifications of child abuse or neglect, including the Police family violence referrals. This is a 3 per cent decrease from last year’s total of 153,407 notifications.

This year, 61,877 notifications (42 per cent) needed further action to determine the response and social work services needed. Last year, 60,330 notifications (39 per cent) required further action.

As a result of further action, we identified 22,984 findings of substantiated abuse. This is compared to 22,172 in 2011/2012. Of these:

• 12,777 (55.6 per cent) were emotional abuse findings
• 5,405 (23.5 per cent) were neglect findings
• 3,343 (14.5 per cent) were physical abuse findings
• 1,459 (6.3 per cent) were sexual abuse findings.

Care and Protection family group conferences

Care and Protection Family Group Conferences formally bring together family/whānau and professionals to talk about concerns for a child or young person’s safety or wellbeing. The number of Care and Protection Family Group Conferences was 8,583 this year, compared to 8,809 last year.

Progress towards Better Public Services Result 4

In the year to 30 June 2013, 3,181 children experienced substantiated physical abuse, a 0.4 per cent reduction from the June 2012 figure of 3,195 children.

2012-2015 Statement of Intent Performance Indicators

Fewer children are vulnerable