Easy English fact sheets for parents dealing with the child protection system. Advice from parents with experience.

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Community Services say your child is not safe

Some things Community Services may do.
  1. Make a plan with you.
    It is called a safety plan.
or
  1. Take your child away.
    It is for a short time only.
    This is called
    temporary care arrangement.
or
  1. Take your child away.
    You need to go to Court.
    This is called to remove your child.

Make a plan with you

You and Community Service meet.
They want your child to be safe.
They will tell you things you need to do.
You must be able to do these things.
Only say yes to the things you will be able to do.
Like my partner is drinking all day.
I will take my child to my mums place.
When you do not do these things
  • you can get in to trouble
  • your child may need to go to care.
Then
They will make a plan with you.
It will help you do those things.
They write it all down.
You can ask for it in a way you can read and use.
Like in Easy English.
It will look like this fact sheet.
You can ask for help to know what you need to do.
Like talk to
  • a support person
  • an advocate.
Then
You need to sign your plan.
It means you agree to do everything in your plan.
This is your Safety Plan.
Then
The staff will meet you again.
They will check
  • you are doing the things in the plan
  • do you still need the plan?

Take your child away.

It is for a short time only
Some times it can be hard to look after your child.
Like you get sick.
There is no one else to help you.
You say you need help.
Community Services can help you.
They can find a family to look after your child.
It is for a short time. Like 3 months.
You can see your child in this time.
At the end of 3 months.
Community Services will check how you are.
Your child can stay with the other family for 3 more months.
That is now 6 months.
We also call it half a year.
Like all of
  • February, March, April
  • May, June, July.
Then
Your child comes home.
But
Sometimes you still can not look after your child.
That is ok.
Community Services will help you.

Take your child away

Community Services say your child is not safe.
The staff will take your child to a new home.
Your child will stay with a
  • different member of your family
    or
  • a family you do not know.
Community Services check your child will be safe there.
You need to go to Court about your child.
Read our fact sheets about Court.
They will help you know what to do. Like

More information

This fact sheet is general information.
It may not be the same for you.
Talk to a lawyer about
  • your own child
  • your family.
This fact sheet was made by
  • The WASH House
  • The Ability Rights Centre. A service of IDRS
with
  • a Parent Advisory Group, 2020.
Images
We have used images from
  • ChangePeople
  • Compic
  • Mayer-Johnson
  • Participics
  • Picto-Selector
Access Easy English helped The WASH House write the Easy English.
February 2020.

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