Senate Education and Employment Legislation Committee, , 5:33:19 to 5:36:04
The department explains why it does not hold national data on the prevalence of child abuse in early childhood settings, citing jurisdictional boundaries and the role of law enforcement.
Topics: Child safety, AFP
Speakers: Ms. Kylie Crane, Senator Matt O'Sullivan
>> The Senator, the the question, as it was asked and as we've responded, goes to um a a range of things in the early childhood um system that aren't part of the data that not just that we don't hold, but doesn't exist. So um from recollection in the last hearing when we talked about some of this um the actual information when it becomes available is often made available to law enforcement before it's actually made available to to regulators or or others. When it comes to the measures that ministers have uh endorsed and that we are implementing at the moment um they are a suite of measures. So when we're looking at um the effectiveness of those um some of them go to again uh uplifting the the quality and and capability and understanding around child safety the child safety training goes to that um the use of um CCTV the assessment goes to that we've got the worker register so all of those measures individually um address one part of what might have been a particular issue identified and raised either through the child safety review that was undertaken by a sequel or through other actions. that are there um and collectively the implementation of those and the active monitoring of those um are what's uplifting both the quality and the safety that we'd expect in that
>> and thank you for that. My question really goes to if you're not though getting the data and measuring how can you measure whether or not you've made those interventions that you talk about good interventions uh and whether or not they're actually having the desired
Uh so senator I I in terms of that the the data
>> why can't we collect that data? Why why would you not collect that?
>> So it's it's certainly not data that we would collect as a matter of course through what what the department as an example uh we have the right to collect information for the purpose of administering the childcare subsidy system. So that information is gathered around an a family a parent their income things like that. From a provider's perspective, uh we gather information around fitness propriety and their ability to actually um administer childare subsidy dollars. The sorts of data that you're talking about, some uh the regulators would have access to, so states and territories, but um are not in significant portion, as I said from previous testimony, uh actually federal police uh or state police or others would have access to it. Um I understand in other hearings there's been conversations about information sharing. That is certainly an active conversation that is happening across Commonwealth departments and with states and territories. But at the moment the information is certainly not available to the department. Um and it's not available collectively uh to any one of those individuals that I mentioned.