Cathy has over 20 years’ experience as a senior public servant in Queensland and South Australia, working in and across strategic policy, legislative reform, planning and service delivery roles in the areas of child and family services, youth justice, disability services and domestic family and sexual violence. In 2016 Cathy was appointed as Chief Executive, to establish and lead the Department for Child Protection in South Australia. In 2019 Cathy was awarded the Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA) National Fellowship for outstanding contribution to the study and practice of public administration. In 2023, Cathy was appointed as the Independent Implementation Supervisor to oversee implementation of the Queensland Government Response to recommendations made by the Women’s Safety and Justice Taskforce delivering 3 reports to government regarding implementation progress. In late 2023, Cathy joined the Board of Life Without Barriers and currently chairs the Practice Governance Committee.

Synopsis: Why? If we focus on placement purpose rather than placement type, then we move away from binary debates of types of placements and we can put to the fore doing the best for each child, and their family based on their circumstances and needs. Continued focus on placement type just exacerbates the rhetoric that residential care should be a placement of last resort and that it is high cost and low value. How? Move away from linear care trajectories and consider how placements can be used more creatively, rather than based on hierarchies, and the negative connotations of 'failing up' to residential care. Incorporate respite/short term placements. Issues - child welfare systems are intrinsically rigid and as funding has become more limited (austerity wider global factors) then binary debates have become more entrenched. Insufficient investment in workforce leading to high turnover and recruitment difficulties; poor long term outcomes for children in out of home care, but studies of long term outcomes are often based on secondary analysis of administrative datasets that by their very nature are focused on negative outcomes (i.e., crime and prisons data, homelessness and unemployment). Complexity of needs of the population (i.e., mental health). Privatisation and profiteering. Some glimmers of hope - multi-disciplinary teams and inter-agency working recognising and responding to the holistic needs of children and young people. Recognition of the need to invest in the workforce and provide high quality supervision. Flexible working and placements, along with partnership working with families. Collaborations between public and private sectors. What else do we need - focus on similarities and commonalities to facilitate more nuanced debates and discussions about when to provide out of home care, and ensure it is the best possible quality. Investment in longitudinal primary research ensuring that the voice of children, young people, their families and practitioners is embedded.

Synopsis: Parents and family with children in child protection and out-of-home care systems are among the most stigmatised in our societies. Parents and family face disrespect and exclusion. Drawing on the lived experiences of parents, children and other family in Australia, Tammy will argue for parents and family to be reconceptualised as solution holders and leaders in child protection policy and practice. Tammy’s talk will remind us that children need their families a lot more than they need agencies and workers.

Synopsis: A recent international review of residential child care practices has revealed the wide variety of qualification levels required across countries. These range from those with no minimum qualifications to those requiring a specific university degree (social education). The presentation will analyse the situation in different countries and the relationship between professional qualification levels and the use of residential care. Special reference will be made to the case of Spain as a model of high qualification requirements and its implications.

Synopsis: In the child and family sector, we build trust and relationships with young people and their families. Whether we show up in homes, residential programs, schools, or community settings, we often don’t get to choose when we enter a young person’s life, where we meet them, or how long we stay. Compared to the weight of crises, histories, and systems, what we do each day may seem ordinary. This talk is a reminder of what matters–hear and now–in the heart of our communities.