Improving care and post-care for children and young people

Care Services Investment Reforms and other initiatives

We have reviewed our investment in care services, to determine the effectiveness of existing investment and to provide options for future commissioning of services supplied under the Child Protection (Placement Services) Investment Specification.

This has included considering alternative options recommended by the Queensland Child Protection Commission of Inquiry, such as the transfer of carers (Recommendations 8.4 and, 8.5, 8.6), professional foster care (Recommendation 8.10), boarding schools (Recommendation 8.11) and therapeutic care.

The aim is to revitalise the child protection system so it is flexible and responds to the individual needs of children and young people in care, including their care, protection, as well as medical, educational and therapeutic needs.

Queensland Care Services Outcomes Framework

Care services are a key component of the child protection system to enable children and young people to be safe and reach their full potential, regardless of their situations.

We are working in partnership with service providers to build a more robust system that focuses on achieving meaningful outcomes for children and young people in care.

To guide the collaborative approach between government and non-government services, the Queensland Care Services Outcomes Framework (PDF, 1.2 MB) Queensland Care Services Outcomes Framework (DOCX, 2.2 MB) has been developed to establish a foundation in caring for children and young people and meeting their individual needs.

The framework aims to:

  • establish a shared vision in identifying and measuring outcomes for children in care
  • promote integrated and coordinated responses to the needs of children in care.
  • recognise the diversity and uniqueness of children’s needs in care.

The framework is structured around five domains for achieving or improving life outcomes for children and young people. These domains are:

  • Safe and nurtured — children and young people feel cared for and nurtured in stable environments, safe from abuse, neglect, violence and harm.
  • Connected — children and young people are positively connected to family, culture and community and have a sense of identity and belonging.
  • Achieving — children and young people attend and engage in their education, meet developmental milestones, engage in and benefit from recreational activities and develop independence and life skills.
  • Healthy — children and young people are physically, emotionally and mentally healthy and lead an active and healthy lifestyle.
  • Resilient — children and young people feel confident and have social skills, coping skills and the ability to manage adversity.

We are working with service providers on how their everyday work with children and young people in care aligns to the Framework. This action learning approach will enable services to test and refine the measures for ongoing quality improvement.

Increasing placement options for children and young people in care

We are working on a range of initiatives to increase placement options with key focus on:

  • increasing foster and kinship care through, for example, programs which support connections to kin, community, and culture, alternative family based care, finding kin, carer assessment and training, and tailored support programs.
  • accessing supports to stabilise placements such as the National Disability Insurance Scheme, Evolve Therapeutic Services and the Navigate Your Health and Strengthening health assessments for children and young people in care initiatives.
  • ensuring investment performance through individualised placement and support and investment guidelines
  • maintaining quality of care through our Child Safety Licensing team

Expanding family-based care for children with complex needs

Specialist therapeutic family-based care aims to help children and young people who have experienced and are impacted by trauma, and offers an alternative option to non-family-based care such as residential care. It allows children and young people to receive care in stable family-based environments and supports them to be returned to long-term family-based care, or be reunified with their families, and ultimately achieve better life outcomes.

As part of the strengthening of family-based care, we are considering a range of specialist care options for children and young people to receive therapeutic or specialist support within a family environment.

New specialist family-based care will also be considered as an option for sibling groups and for, children and young people with disability, high medical needs or requiring specialised behaviour support, or who would otherwise be placed in a non-family based placement.

Improving residential care services for children and young people

The Hope and Healing Framework aims to improve the quality of residential or non-family-based care provided to children and young people across Queensland.

The Framework provides residential care staff with a new way of working with children and young people who require trauma-related therapeutic support.

We contracted PeakCare to work with the residential care service sector, including supported independent living services and Safe Houses, to implement the Framework. This includes:

  • facilitating regional workshops to map out strategies for implementation
  • establishing working groups to guide and support residential care services in adopting the framework
  • conducting an audit of current training, learning and professional development activities across the residential care sector to inform the development of foundational training modules
  • developing training materials and resources
  • liaising with TAFE Queensland to link training modules to qualification programming
  • monitoring, reviewing and evaluating ongoing training and professional development.

10 foundational training modules of the Hope and Healing Trauma Informed Therapeutic Framework are live, with residential care staff required to have completed the training prior to commencing unsupervised direct care work with children and young people.

Minimum qualifications standards for residential care workers

The Minimum Qualification Standards are for all residential care staff and their direct supervisors working in Queensland took effect on 1 January 2019.

All residential care staff and their direct supervisors employed by licensed residential care services must:

  • hold, or be enrolled in and working towards, a recognised relevant qualification. Staff may be enrolled as part of their recruitment process with the residential care service provider but must be working towards obtaining a recognised relevant qualification prior to commencing any unsupervised direct care work with children and young people.
  • for those staff currently enrolled, obtain the qualification within the timeframes determined by the relevant training authority, and
  • complete the online Home and Healing Framework foundations training prior to commencing unsupervised direct care work with children and young people

The Strengthening the Queensland Residential Care Workforce - Minimum Qualification Standards Sheet provides further details, including information on compliance with the Minimum Qualification Standards and preferred qualifications.

Implementation of the Hope and Healing Framework and the Minimum Qualification Standards delivers on the recommendations of the Queensland Child Protection Commission of Inquiry to improve life outcomes for children and young people living in residential care facilities.

The Queensland Government is committed to providing services that better support the safety, wellbeing and best interests of Queensland’s most at-risk children and young people.

Where there are no acceptable alternatives, children and young people will be taken into care, protected and cared for. In care, they will receive the support they need to enjoy their childhood, feel safe and cared for, and develop into adulthood.

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Improving health outcomes for children and young people in care

Evolve Therapeutic Services

Evolve Therapeutic Services (ETS) supports children and young people who present with severe and complex mental health support needs and who are subject to active child protection intervention.

ETS is delivered by Queensland Health through 12 Hospital and Health Services across 16 sites to provide mental health intervention services as planned, coordinated therapeutic and behaviour support to children and young people in care to improve their health and wellbeing.

ETS does not replace the services offered by children or young people's usual care provider.

In an emergency, call 000 or attend your nearest hospital emergency department.

Navigate Your Health (NYH) commenced as a pilot program in our Brisbane District in early 2018 with a focus on ensuring children and young people in care receive improved access to health checks, referrals and healthcare coordination.

NYH is supported by Nurse Navigators who take a lead role in supporting children and young people referred to the program. The Nurse Navigators work across Child Safety Service Centres (CSSCs), and in partnership with General Practices, Aboriginal Medical Services and other community mental health centres, as required.

Children and young people entering care or in care, are able to receive a preliminary health assessment and a comprehensive health assessment to identify health problems early and connect to health services to address needs.

The program has now expanded and supports children and young people case managed by the following CSSCs:

  • Chermside, Alderley, Forest Lake, Inala, Cannon Hill and Mount Gravatt
  • Logan and Loganlea
  • Cairns and Edmonton

For a Nurse Navigator to be involved, children and young people must have an interim or finalised child protection order granting custody or guardianship to the Chief Executive of the Department of Children, Youth Justice and Multicultural Affairs and must be referred by their Child Safety Officer.

NYH does not replace the services of the children or young people's usual care provider.

In an emergency, call 000 or attend your nearest hospital emergency department.

Strengthening health assessment pathways for children and young people in care

The Strengthening health assessment pathways for children and young people in care initiative is a Queensland wide project aimed at improving both Child Safety and Health sector responses to the health needs of children and young people in care. The aim is to be achieved by:

  • leveraging the capacity of the state-wide Primary Health Network to engage, consult and raise awareness of the initiative and a master health pathway with general practitioners, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health services and other health and allied health practitioners.
  • creating and implementing a state-wide training program incorporating information and communication strategies for Child Safety staff, foster and kinship carers, residential care staff and non-government and foster, kinship and residential care providers.
  • continuing to establish and embed Communities of Practice (CoPs) in seven catchment areas included in the initiative's pilot period i.e. Aitkenvale/Thuringowa, Mount Isa, North Ipswich, Bayside (including the Southern Moreton Bay Islands), Maryborough, Labrador and Caboolture.
  • establishing and embedding CoPs in seven additional catchment areas.
  • ensuring CoPs support local partnerships between Queensland Health, Child Safety and other relevant stakeholders.
  • promoting and embedding local health assessment pathways into business as usual processes and practices for Child Safety staff, general practices and other health professionals, care agencies, carers and educators.

The Strengthening health assessment does not replace the services offered by the children or young people's usual care provider.

In an emergency, call 000 or attend your nearest hospital emergency department.

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Strengthening support for young people when they leave care

Under the Child Protection Act 1999, the Queensland Government is responsible for ensuring support and assistance is available to assist young people, aged 15 to 25 years, in their transition from care to adulthood.

Extended Post Care Support (EPCS)

In June 2022, the Queensland Government announced a historic funding commitment for young adults leaving care to ensure they are better supported to transition from care.

Three EPCS initiatives came into effect on 1 July 2023:

  1. New services being rolled out across Queensland to deliver culturally appropriate, proactive and practical support to young adults leaving care from their 18th birthday up to their 21st birthday.
  2. Extension of the care allowance for young adults who continue living with their former carer or guardian from 19 up until their 21st birthday. The care allowance is paid to the young adult’s former carer or guardian (carer) to meet the everyday living costs of the young adult and is paid at the full base rate.
  3. Financial support of up to $16,000 per year being available to young adults leaving care to live in their own housing arrangements as independent adults. The financial support is available from their 18th birthday up until their 21st birthday and will assist in meeting their everyday living costs. Support is available for young people turning 18 and transitioning to adulthood after 1 July 2023. This support will be available up until the young adults 21st birthday.

The new EPCS services are funded to complement and not duplicate the supports already available in the service system. They will sit within the continuum of support available to young people and young adults from 15 up until their 25th birthday.

EPCS services will work directly with young adults to assist with finding a safe and affordable place to live, establishing or maintaining connections with family, culture, Country and community, applying for a job or enrolling in a training course or taking young adults to appointments to meet their health and wellbeing needs.

Next Step Plus

Building on the success and learnings from the former Next Step After Care Program, the redesigned Next Step Plus commenced on 1 April 2020.

Next Step Plus program's vision is that all young people are resilient and supported and develop, the skills, capacity and capability to be the people they want to be. 

The Next Step Plus program will assist young people from the age of 15, who are in care, to develop the skills and knowledge to live independently; and to ensure those who have left care are able to receive additional support and services should they require them.

RegionProviderEmailTelephone
South East YFS Ltd YFSconnect@yfs.org.au  (07) 3826 1500
Moreton Life Without Barriers  nextstepreferrals@lwb.org.au 1800 639 878 or
0436 816 270
Central Life without Barriers nextstepreferrals@lwb.org.au  1800 639 878 or
0436 816 270
South West - Kingaroy South Burnett CTC youth@sbctc.com.au (07) 4162 7788 or
0428 627 788
South West - Charleville, Roma & Dalby Goolburri Aboriginal Health Advancement   WadeC@goolburri.org.au (07) 4637 9953
South West - Ipswich North and South,
Toowoomba North and South, Springfield		 Life without Barriers nextstepreferrals@lwb.org.au 1800 639 878 or
0436 816 270
Northern Region - Atherton, Cairns, Cape York and Torres Strait Islands,
Cooktown, Edmonton, Innisfail and North Cairns and Lower Cape 		 Youth Empowered Towards Independence (YETI)  nextstep@yeti.net.au or
referrals@yeti.net.au		 (07) 4051 4927
Northern Region - Mount Isa-Gulf, Townsville, Aitkenvale, Thuringowa Churches of Christ Queensland (CofC) nextstep@cofcqld.com.au Mount Isa
(07) 4740 1333
Townsville
(07) 4771 8888

Transition and Post Care Support Program

The Transition and Post Care Support (TPCS) program was established in response to the needs of young people with complex disability, mental health, high-risk behavioural and/or Youth Justice involvement at significant risk of homelessness as they transition from care.

TPCS is supported by funding from the Commonwealth Government National Housing and Homelessness Agreement until June 2024.

There are 12 Child Safety Transition Officers in Queensland and an additional two non-government TPCS programs running in the South East and Brisbane & Moreton Bay regions. Transition Officers can start supporting a young person in care from 15 years of age and post-care up until age 21. Services are prioritised for those young people who are most at risk of homelessness as they transition to adulthood or who are experiencing homelessness post care.

Transition Officers provide direct support to young people, as well as their Safety and Support Networks, to ensure they will be safe, well supported, connected to community and culture, involved in fulfilling activities and maintaining healthy relationships with others.

This is achieved by:

  • establishing a trustful working relationship with a young person to assist their transition to adulthood planning and journey
  • assisting the young person’s Safety and Support Network to create and achieve all goals in a transition to adulthood plan
  • ensuring the young person is involved in, prepared for and planning their own transition from care
  • working directly with the young person to develop the independence and practical skills they need for young adulthood
  • establishing and maintaining community links with appropriate services and supports.

Sortli

Sortli (short for 'sort out your life') is a free mobile app to help young people think about their future life and plan for transition to independence.

Sortli was developed by young people who have already left the care system and are living independently as well as professionals who work with young people in care.

As Sortli covers come sensitive topics, it is not suitable for young people under 15 years of age.

Find out more and download the app.

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