This webinar presentation by Professor Marie Connolly of the University of Melbourne was given at a UNICEF Seminar on the 1 April 2014. Professor Connolly began by introducing the history and background of Family Group Conference (FGC) in New Zealand, which was developed initially in the late 1980s as a culturally responsive way of diverting children and their families from the court system. It has since become a key decision-making mechanism for both care and protection and youth justice systems. FGC was later introduced in Australia in the early 1990s, where it is recognised in a number of States as an important approach, although its use remains at the discretion of the case workers. FGC is a decision-making process whereby the whole 'family' can help make decisions about the best way to support the family and take care of the child. 'Family' is determined broadly, to include the child, parents, extended family as well as significant people in the life of the child who may not actually be blood related. Professor Connolly also discussed the growing body of research showing both the potential of FGC in terms of reduction of child maltreatment and increased placement stability, but also some of the challenges in the approach and the major gaps in evidence.
Professor Connolly then turned to the influence of FGC on the development of formal or statutory kinship care in the region. In 2010, statutory kinship care in Australia overtook foster care as the primary form of alternative care placement. Yet despite kinship care being prioritized as the preferred care option for vulnerable children, the vast majority of kinship care arrangements are informal and not supported by the government. Professor Connolly discussed some of the reasons for this, including tensions between family rights and responsibilities and the role of the state in supporting familial care, as well as resource implications on children services. She suggested, however, that broader government support to kinship care could be beneficial to both the state and the families involved if it acted to support children and carers, and potentially prevent children requiring much more resource intensive statutory services. She concluded by highlighting the need for better data and a better understanding of the kinship care population, including informal kinship care, and for preventive approaches to child protection through support to kin carers and their children.
