Pressure is growing on Human Services Minister with new data confirming the enormous stress on the Child Protection system.
Shadow Minister Rebecca White said Jacquie Petrusma is failing staff who are trying to protect Tasmania’s most vulnerable young people.
“Child Protection workers are dealing with as many as 24 individual cases at a time as they try desperately to keep kids safe,” Ms White said.
“The ability of child protection workers to properly support vulnerable children when workers have up to 24 individual cases is undoubtedly challenged.
“At the same time there are kids on a waiting list who haven’t even been allocated a case-worker.
“The Ministers continues to wrongly argue that there’s not a resourcing issue within Child Protection Services.
“The Government has failed when it comes to recruiting additional child protection staff.
“The Minister should take action today to recruit to fill vacancies in the child protection system which would help take some of the pressure off.
“Jacquie Petrusma insists a review of the child protection system will address many of these matters but any solution is six months away and subject to the budget process.
“The Minister needs to be more proactive and should release the terms of reference for the review and the timeframe for consultation so the Tasmanian public can fully understand what the Minister intends to do to change the child protection system.”
Rebecca White MP Shadow Human Services Minister
