A recently released government report has acknowledged and detailed challenges facing the out of home care system in Victoria.
The Victorian Auditor General’s Office (VAGO) report looked into the out of home care system in Victoria and found that that the Victorian Government’s child protection system is not fully meeting the needs of children in the foster, kinship and residential care services.
The report delivers five key recommendations, which have been broadly supported by Victorian Foster care agencies and services:
Recommendation 1: To strengthen home-based care capacity through improved foster carer recruitment and retention, including reviewing care allowances.
Recommendation 2: To monitor the status of all accredited foster carers.
Recommendation 3: To ensure sufficient and appropriate placement capacity across the system.
Recommendation 4: To improve data quality and system functionality.
Recommendation 5: To strengthen demand forecasting with greater geographic granularity.
The Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare has released a response, unpacking the recommendations: https://cfecfw.org.au/peak-responds-to-vago-report-on-out-of-home-care-services/
Foster Care Association of Victoria (FCAV) response: https://www.fcav.org.au/news/victorian-auditor-generals-report-on-out-of-home-care-services
Anchor supports the implementation of these recommendations in full. We will continue to monitor the detail and the delivery, and support the sector as it evolves the system to better suits the needs of children, carers and families.
