What is the Implementation Plan 2009-2012?
The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) endorsed the
National Framework for Protecting Australia's Children: Protecting Children Is Everyone's Business, 2009-2020 on 30 April 2009. The National Framework will operate through a series of three-year action plans, each of which will identify actions and strategies aimed at ensuring that
Australia's children and young people are safe and well through
a substantial and sustained reduction in child abuse and neglect in Australia over time.
This Implementation Plan 2009-2012 sets out how all governments will take forward the actions identified in the first three-year action plan of the National Framework. It explains how progress will be measured and monitored, sets out roles and responsibilities and discusses how everyone can get involved in achieving better outcomes for children.
The action plan contains more than 70 actions, and many more have been announced by governments since the National Framework was endorsed by COAG. This Implementation Plan 2009-2012 focuses on the priority actions that are important first steps under the National Framework.
As implementation progresses, elements of this Implementation Plan 2009-2012 will grow and change, with new actions added or shifts in focus from some actions to others. States, Territories and the Commonwealth will need to review and adjust actions over time, and the Community and Disability Services Ministers' Conference (CDSMC) will also consider new policy directions and decisions for inclusion at a later date.
This Implementation Plan 2009-2012 is part of a learning process. Outcomes and lessons learnt from actions undertaken in the first three years will be used to inform the development of the next action plan.
Everyone has a role to play in protecting Australia's children. This key message was reflected in the approach taken by governments, the non-government sector and the community more broadly by working together to develop the National Framework. Continuing this approach throughout the implementation and operation of the National Framework is critical if we want to achieve better outcomes for children. This Implementation Plan 2009-2012 outlines opportunities for continued collaboration and encourages people from across the Australian community - local government, non-government organisations, business, families, children and young people - to get involved.
We recognise that Indigenous children are over-represented in child protection systems. To close this gap, governments and service providers will need to work in partnership with Indigenous families, communities and organisations in implementing and delivering the first three-year action plan of the National Framework.
Context
The National Framework commits the Australian, State and Territory governments to a range of actions over the next three years to ensure children are safe and well.
All of the actions contained in the first action plan are linked to each other and to broader social reform measures. The actions aim to provide an integrated perspective on protecting children, from prevention and early intervention right through to statutory services. This 'public health model' approach focuses on early intervention and places priority on having universal supports available for all families, with more intensive services provided to those families that need additional assistance.
The Community and Disability Services Ministers' Conference (CDSMC), the Commonwealth-State Ministerial Council that developed the National Framework for the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), has responsibility for the ongoing management and implementation of the National Framework.
This Implementation Plan 2009-2012 is a joint effort, with all governments, the non-government sector and State and Territory Children's Commissioners contributing.
A copy of the National Framework, which contains the first three-year action plan, is available online at Council of Australian governments website (www.coag.gov.au)