Service system responses in statutory child protection for children and young people exposed to domestic family violence

Investigators

Prof Daryl Higgins, Emeritus Professor Morag McArthur, Dr Bianca Hoban, Dr Chloe Gordon (ACU); Dr Debbie Scott (Monash/Turning Point), Alex Cahill, Jacqui Stewart

Funding

Australian Government Department of Social Services

Aims

The study aims were to:

• Describe the characteristics of children and families reported to child protection services with issues of domestic and family violence
• Identify and map service responses including the use of safety plans and other actions taken including referrals; and
• Make recommendations on how community-based and government services can better recognise and respond to violence.

Background

Children and young people’s exposure to family violence has become a prominent policy issue within Australia. There has been a growing need to deepen understandings of service system responses to these children and young people, specifically the response they receive within the statutory child protection system.

This project developed and piloted a methodology to explore child protection outcomes and service system referrals and responses associated with families where child protection concerns include domestic and family violence.

Project details

The Queensland statutory child protection service (Department of Child Safety, Youth and Women) agreed to participate and provide data for the pilot.

The project had four stages:

1. A literature review: assessing the intersection between child protection and family violence systems, including the identification of service gaps and access pathways, to provide context for the study.
2. Case file review and quantitative data analysis: identifying key characteristics of children and families reported to the Queensland child protection service with issues of domestic and family violence in the period between 1 July 2015 – 31 December 2016.
3. Semi-structured qualitative interviews: hearing from child protection practitioners and staff from non-government agencies to which families were referred to understand the nature of the interventions and processes for making referrals, evaluating risk and identifying the barriers and enablers to working across systems.
4. Data synthesis: outlining the findings of the pilot study and the effectiveness of the approach to illuminating what happens to the children and families reported to child protection with issues of domestic and family violence.

The pilot study demonstrated the value in asking about and looking for evidence of child-centred service responses for children affected by domestic and family violence who come to the attention of statutory child protection authorities. It helped illuminate opportunities for system reform and service improvements. However, it was not without its challenges. The initial identification of child protection cases involving domestic and family violence from across the whole of Queensland was difficult.

Resource-intensive processes were required to identify domestic and family violence in child protection cases for the period between 2015–2016. Further intensive resources were required to contact statutory child protection caseworkers and non-government staff to take part in the interviews.

Projected community impact

The study reinforced the need for child-centred therapeutic responses tailored to the needs of children affected by domestic and family violence who come to the attention of statutory child protection authorities. 

Publications

Gordon, C., Higgins, D., McArthur, M., & Scott, D. (2018). Literature review conducted for Phase 1 report: Service system responses to the needs of children to keep them safe from violence. Canberra: Institute of Child Protection Studies, Australian Catholic University.

Cahill, A., Stewart, J., & Higgins, D. (2019). Service system responses to the needs of children to keep them safe from violence. Melbourne: Australian Catholic University, Institute of Child Protection Studies.

Cahill, A., Higgins, D. & Kerr, S. (2020). System reform for children and young people in statutory child exposed to domestic and family violence, Research to Practice Series. Canberra: Institute of Child Protection Studies, Australian Catholic University.

Project timeline

2017-2019

Ethics

The ACU Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) (2017-210N) provided ethical clearance for the study. This was ratified by Monash University HREC (12226).

Contact

For more information contact: icps@acu.edu.au