Meeting children's needs when the family environment isn't always "good enough": A systems approach

Fight Child Protection Department Corruption:

Note: Full Report attached as PDF file below

This paper provides a theoretical basis to using a systems approach to working with vulnerable and high-risk families where children's needs are generally being met, but where parenting is at times not "good enough" or even unsafe.

Practical tools to aid the implementation of a systems approach to intensive home based support for these families are provided in three accompanying practice resources. These resources (developed by Marie Iannos and Greg Antcliff, 2013) provide some guidance in the use of motivational interviewing, planning for safety with at-risk families and parent skills training:

Key messages

For some at-risk children, out-of-home care is the best option. For others - especially those who live in family environments that are safe most of the time, but which occasionally become unsafe - intensive home-based family support may be preferable.
Judging whether a family environment is "safe enough" can be difficult, especially considering there is no definitive description of what constitutes a safe environment for children.
The systems approach has been advocated by a number of child protection experts. This approach emphasises that while it is not possible to eliminate human error or guarantee child safety, the consequences of errors and dangers can be minimised by establishing systems that recognise that they will inevitably occur.
If the strengths in the family environment are encouraged, and if risks are minimised using a systems approach, it may be possible to provide safety for children who live in variable family environments.

Introduction

Families - whether safe or unsafe - are pivotal in shaping child development. The United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRoC) declared that for a child to develop to his or her best capabilities he or she "should grow up in a family environment in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding" (United Nations, 1989, para 8). Similarly, The National Framework for Protecting Australia's Children (Council of Australian Governments [COAG], 2009) recognises the CRoC, and Supporting Outcome 1 reiterates: "Children live in safe and supportive families and communities" (p. 15).

While the ideal situation is that children grow up loved and nurtured within their family environments, the circumstances for many children are less than ideal. For those children whose families do not provide a healthy and supportive environment, and particularly for those who are at risk of harm, it may be necessary for the child protection system to intervene in the best interests of the child. For some children this may involve removal from the home. For others, where children's needs are generally being met, the best option may be to support the parents to care for their child in their home environment and develop a "safety net" for those times when parenting is not "good enough" or the home environment becomes unsafe.

Author

Debbie Scott is a Research Fellow at the Australian Institute of Family Studies.

Acknowledgements

The author wishes to acknowledge the valuable contribution of Leah Bromfield (Australian Centre for Child Protection, University of South Australia). Appreciation is also extended to Elly Robinson and Rhys Price-Robertson of the Australian Institute of Family Studies.