Thousands of children in the NSW protection system at risk of abuse are not being visited in person by authorities as caseworker vacancy rates spike.
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Between July and September 2023, the NSW Department of Communities and Justice received 106,495 concern reports for children and young people, 57 per cent of whom were deemed at risk of significant harm.
But just 7740 children involved in significant harm reports were visited by a department caseworker, a 9.1 per cent decrease compared to the same quarter in 2022.
Cases are closed if a child is not visited within 28 days, however one-third of those children were the subject of another report of serious harm within 12 months as of June.
Premier Chris Minns said the statistics were not good enough and reiterated the importance of his government's decision to remove public sector wage caps to attract more staff.
"We're hopeful that the changes we've made for the public service across the board will encourage more people into this profession because many people regard it as a calling," he told reporters on Monday.
"It's really difficult work and the people that do it are truly saints.
"It would be extremely confronting every single day to walk into a situation where a child may be in neglect or a family is breaking down and having to make decisions that could have a massive impact, not just on the child but the entire family."
But Fams, a peak body for family and children's services, said more funding was needed for early intervention and prevention programs.
Chief executive Susan Watson said the government's focus should be on preventing kids from ever entering out-of-home care, particularly in remote and Indigenous communities.
"This is crucial to stem the tide of children reported, or tragically re-reported, as vulnerable and ending up in out-of-home care," she said.
"Early intervention programs are highly effective and are key to breaking the cycle of trauma and abuse."
Steadily declining staff numbers and privatisation have been blamed for the department's failure to visit at-risk children.
Caseworker vacancy rates spiked by five percentage points to 12 per cent between July and September.
In the first quarter of 2023/24, there were 2063 caseworkers, compared with 2229 at the same time in 2022/23.
The Public Service Association said many child protection workers were claiming workers' compensation due to stress and burnout.
General secretary Stewart Little said it was time for the government to de-privatise and urgently reform the system.
"Vulnerable kids aren't slipping through the cracks anymore, they're just tumbling through gaping holes," he said.
"Our members in child protection are telling us they've never seen the system in worse shape, they are stressed out of their minds and leaving in mass numbers."
Mr Stewart said reforms needed to ensure the government took control by ending outsourcing to non-government organisations and getting qualified caseworkers back into the system.
Australian Associated Press
