Consultation underway on the Statutory Review of the Children’s Guardian Act
The Office of the Children’s Guardian is undertaking a statutory review of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019.
The Children’s Guardian Act 2019 commenced on 1 March 2020. It brought together functions of the Children’s Guardian under one Act. Giving effect to the view of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, the Act expanded the Children’s Guardian’s functions to include reportable conduct, the Official Community Visitor Scheme and the residential care workers register.
We are conducting a review to determine if the policy objectives of the Act remain valid, and the terms remain appropriate for achieving those objectives.
The Children’s Guardian’s functions in relation to the child safe scheme are not subject to this review as the scheme only commenced on 1 February this year.
However, the Child Safe Standards provide an overarching lens through which the functions of the Children’s Guardian and the operations of the OCG should be examined. The child safe scheme has informed the Children’s Guardian’s recent reviews of the statutory out-of-home care, adoption and voluntary out-of-home care regulatory frameworks.
The focus for the statutory review is on those areas that have not had recent review or consultation.
The main focus areas of the consultation are the:
- Reportable Conduct Scheme
- Deputy Children’s Guardian role
- Official Community Visitors Scheme.
Organisations are invited to respond to the discussion paper on the NSW Have your say website. Please send your responses to policyteam@ocg.nsw.gov.au
Responses to the discussion paper need to be made by 19 August 2022.
The consultations will inform a report to Parliament due by 1 March next year.
