The third and final stage of reforms arising from the Child Protection Reform Amendment Act 2017 will commence Monday, 29th October. These changes include: embedding of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle in legislation, removal of reference to the Recognised Entity, introduction of the new concept of an independent person for a child or young person, the ability to delegate functions and powers to an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisation; introduction of a new permanency framework to inform focus on permanency goals, limitations on the use of consecutive short-term orders and the introduction of the permanent care order; greater ability for the family support system to share information in accordance with the Information Sharing Guideline; and a legal requirement for transition planning to commence from 15 years of age and the extension of support eligibility up to the age of 25 for young people who have been in care. For more details, view the latest Supporting Families Changing Futures update. Additional resources on the independent person and information sharing will be available within the next week. An overview video is also available that explains the changes.
