Children's Guardian Amendment Regulation
The Children's Guardian Amendment Regulation transfers, updates, and clarifies the Children’s Guardian’s regulatory functions under the Care Regulation, Adoption Regulation and Child Employment Regulation.
In particular, the Children's Guardian Amendment Regulation provides the legislative detail to support the continued and effective operation of the:
- carers register
- accreditation of designated agencies and adoption service providers
- regulation of children’s employment in entertainment and exhibition
In addition, the Children's Guardian Amendment Regulation introduces a new condition of accreditation, which received sector support during public consultation in 2021. The change will mean that designated agencies cannot arrange the provision of care in a private home with carers other than carers authorised to provide foster or relative/kin care.
The Children's Guardian Amendment Regulation also introduces regulatory reforms consequential upon the commencement of the CG Amendment Act. Specifically, the CG Amendment Regulation makes regulations to support the revised approach to the regulation of voluntary out-of-home care as specialised substitute residential care. It achieves this by:
- continuing the voluntary out-of-home care register as the specialised substitute residential care register
- establishing a code of practice for specialised substitute residential care providers which sets out mandatory requirements to secure provider compliance with the child safe standards
Finally, the Children's Guardian Amendment Regulation makes other miscellaneous and clarifying amendments to ensure all regulations made under the Children's Guardian Act exemplify responsive, contemporary regulation.
