Commission for Children and Young People’s Out of Sight report recommends Power to Kids be funded by the Victorian Government and rolled out to all residential care homes in Victoria.
On 24 June 2021, the Commission for Children and Young People tabled a report to the Victorian Parliament. The report – Out of Sight – documents the findings and recommendations arising from their inquiry into children and young people who are absent or missing from residential care.
The report draws on:
- interviews with children and young people
- interviews with a range of workers and other stakeholders
- a review of client files and incident reports
- data analysis of incident reports, out-of-home care data and warrants issued for children and young people when they left residential care.
The report concludes that children and young people are absent or missing from residential care at an alarming rate and calls for urgent reforms to support them to remain in care. The report’s call for a renewed focus on a multi-agency response is well founded.
Importantly, the report acknowledges MacKillop for the innovative approach developed in Power to Kids as a preventative program to address sexual exploitation and to reduce young people missing from placement (the report recommends that the Victorian Government fund the roll-out of Power to Kids to all residential care homes in Victoria)