Respecting diversity
Child Safety Services provides services to children and families who are diverse in many ways. Diversity can be attributable to differences in cultural and linguistic background, gender, lifestyle, sexuality, socio-economic status, family composition, personal beliefs and values. Diversity is reflected among the staff, as well as the people with whom Child Safety Services works.
Diversity is enriching, sometimes threatening and almost always challenging.
Respecting diversity is about:
- building responsive relationships
- open and honest communication
- examining one's own personal ideas, customs and beliefs and respecting that the beliefs of one person may not be the same as another
- acknowledging and respecting that others can hold different beliefs with equal conviction.
Culture and language are part of identity. Children and families can suffer if their culture and language are ignored, demeaned or marginalised. Culture is dynamic and evolving, not static. Attempting to represent or define a culture carries with it the risk of stereotyping or misrepresentation.
All Child Safety Services' officers should take responsibility for respecting diversity in practice, rather than delegating responsibility to people from 'other' cultures or lifestyles in Child Safety Services.
Respecting diversity does not mean condoning or accepting experiences uncritically because they are culturally based. An inclusive service considers ways in which the abilities, strengths and interests of all children can be supported and extended.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people are over-represented at all stages of the child protection system. Indigenous children and young people represent 6.6 per cent of all children and young people in Queensland, yet in 2007-08 accounted for:
- 19.2 per cent of children notified (4,294 of 22,333)
- 22.1 per cent of children substantiated (1,622 of 7,331)
- 31.5 per cent of children subject to child protection orders (2,185 of 6,942)
- 31.9 per cent of children living away from home (2,274 of 7,134).
The further that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children move through the child protection system, the higher the rates of over-representation. To reduce this over-representation a concerted whole of service system approach is necessary. This requires a collaborative approach to service delivery built on respect and recognition that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, communities and services want to be active partners with Child Safety Services.
Appropriate, effective and timely services need to be provided in partnership with the recognised Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander entities to ensure the safety and well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children throughout Queensland.
Urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and communities are facing different challenges and issues from those families living in rural and remote areas. In Queensland there are numerous discrete Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities with distinct cultural, social, economic and family identities.
For further information refer to the practice paper Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Under the Child Protection Act 1999, section 6, Child Safety Services is required to work with a recognised entity when making all decisions about an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child. For information about the history of recognised entities, the legislative requirement to work collaboratively with a recognised entity for the child and the role and functions of recognised entities, refer to the practice resource Recognised entities.
For information regarding key concepts that underpin Child Safety Services' intervention with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and the process for decision-making refer to Chapter 10.1 Decision-making about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.
Children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds
Child Safety Services recognises that Queensland is a culturally diverse state and works to protect children and young people of diverse cultural, linguistic, ethnic or religious backgrounds who have been harmed or who are at risk of harm.
This work is guided by specific provisions within the Child Protection Act 1999, including:
- Child Protection Act 1999, section 5 (2)(d)(i) - Principles for administration of Act
- Child Protection Act 1999, section 74 - Charter of rights for a child in care
- Child Protection Act 1999, section 122 (1)(d) - Statement of standards.
For further information relevant to working with children and families, refer to practice paper Working with people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.
Child Safety Services' Multicultural Action Plan outlines Child Safety Services' current and proposed activities to achieve key multicultural child protection outcomes and seeks to respond to the protective needs of children and young people from culturally and linguistically divers (CALD) backgrounds.
The action plan's focus on improving the responsiveness of child protection services is inclusive of activities which aim to:
- identify and support CALD child protection staff
- recruit and promote services and support for CALD foster and kinship carers
- collect and report on CALD data
- establish partnerships and consultative mechanisms with CALD communities and stakeholders.
Further information
Additional information can be accessed via the following websites:
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships
- Ethnic Communities Council of Queensland
- Queensland Multicultural Resource Directory
- Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care (SNAICC)
- Translated resources (Child Safety Services website).
- Last updated
- 22 July 2009
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