The Rights of the Child and the 7C’s of Reform

AASW – Social Work People Podcast

Since Dr Robyn Miller started working with isolated, vulnerable families 40 years ago, she has seen enormous changes in the way that children’s needs are understood and responded to. When the Victorian child protection system was overhauled to enshrine the rights of the child as its guiding principle, Robyn became its inaugural Principal Practitioner. In that role she translated the rights of the child into child protection practice. Robyn is still advancing the rights of young people in the child protection system, but now it is in her role as the CEO of a large Community Sector Organisation.

LINKS

Are We Caring for Everyone? AASW symposium

United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child

For information about children’s rights and child protection legislation in Australia see

• Australian Human Rights Commission: Children’s Rights in Australia
• Australian Institute of Family Studies: Child Family Community Australia Australian child protection legislation, CFCA Resource sheet , March 2018

Also mentioned

Miller, R. The Best Interests Principles – A Conceptual Overview, Office for Children, Department of Human Services, Victoria, 2007

Humphreys C, Holzer P, Scott D, Arney F, Bromfield L, Higgins D, The Planets Aligned: Is Child protection Policy Reform Good Luck or Good Management? Australian Social Work, Vol63, No2, June 2010. pp145-163

A history of income support payments for low income parents can be found at:

https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/BN/0809/children#:~:text=The%20Whitlam%20Government%20introduced%20the,the%20name%20it%20was%20given

Respecting Sexual Safety: A Program to Prevent Sexual Exploitation and Harmful Sexual Behaviour in Out-of-Home Care Australian social work https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0312407X.2019.1597910

Mackillop.org.au

For a contrast (albeit fictional)

Dervla McTiernan: The Ruin

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The AASW respectfully acknowledges the past and present traditional owners and on-going custodians of the lands on which this podcast was recorded. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, their ancestors and families, and to the Elders of other communities who may be listening.

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