Social worker's role regarding Youth Protective Assessments 003-12030030

Services Australia has a zero tolerance approach to child abuse.

A staff member must act when they see or hear behaviour, which raises concern about a child or young person's safety. Follow the agency's Risk Identification and Reporting model when identifying and responding to child safety concerns. See Risk identification and management of threats to the safety or welfare of a child.

A protective assessment by the appropriate State or Territory Welfare Authority is needed if a customer is a young person:

• under 15 years of age who is homeless or unsupported
• aged 15 to 17 years (inclusive) who is considered to be at risk of abuse, serious harm or violence, and/or
• under 18 years of age who:
• is in the guardianship, care or custody of a state/territory welfare department, and
• advises the State or Territory Welfare Authority is not adequately supporting them

Young people under 15 years who have advised Services Australia it is unreasonable to live at home (UTLAH) are considered homeless and unsupported regardless of their current living circumstances. A referral for a youth protective assessment is required for these customers.

State and Territory Welfare Authorities are responsible for undertaking protective assessments with young people that fall into these target groups.

Social workers are the liaison and referral agents between Services Australia and the relevant State or Territory Welfare Authority.

A referral should also be made to the appropriate State or Territory Welfare Authority if the social worker has serious concerns about risk to:

• siblings under 18 years
• a dependent child for whom Family Tax Benefit (FTB) is being sought by a non-family member

State and Territory Welfare Authorities are responsible for ensuring the care and protection of children and young people in accordance with State and Territory legislation.

State and Territory Welfare Authorities consequently have responsibility for providing care, protection and associated services to young people who are

• assessed as being at risk and homeless, and
• under the current State and Territory school leaving age for the area they live in

The Commonwealth is responsible for the provision of income support to homeless and unsupported young people above the minimum school leaving age.

The Commonwealth retains the discretion to provide income support to a homeless person less than the minimum school leaving age in exceptional circumstances. The Commonwealth is also responsible for timely and appropriate referrals to State and Territory Welfare Authorities for a risk assessment.

In some cases, social workers will be waiting on a response from a State or Territory Welfare Authority to inform their assessment of whether the customer meets unreasonable to live at home (UTLAH) criteria for income support purposes. A 'reasonable' timeframe for a response is based on a social worker's discretion. The social worker will consider:

• the young person's situation
• the circumstances of the case, taking into account all of the factors about the young person, such as safe and secure accommodation, and their level of support
• the local relationship with the State or Territory Welfare Authority

The social worker:

• should make reasonable attempts to get a response from a State or Territory Welfare Authority within 5 working of requesting the protective assessment
• must document these attempts on the customer's record

An unreasonable delay in finalising a claim for income support may pose a risk to an unsupported young person. If an appropriate response is not received within 30 days or the case is complicated, social workers must consult with a Social Work Support Manager (SWSM). On occasion, it may be appropriate to finalise the UTLAH assessment before the outcome of the Youth Protective Assessment is known. If this occurs, offer young people ongoing support through Social casework.

Young people referred for a Youth Protective Assessment are experiencing vulnerability.

When responding to these customers, social workers must case consult with an EL1 SWSM as soon as possible when:

• the assessing social worker is undelegated
• the young person is aged under 15 years
• the situation is complex
• an unreasonable delay in receiving a response from the State /Territory Welfare Authority is holding up a UTLAH decision and associated finalisation of a claim for an income support payment

Additionally, social workers must consult with an EL2 Social Work Manager (SWM) as soon as possible, regardless of the likely UTLAH decision, when the:

• young person is aged under 15 years, and
• response to the Youth Protective Assessment referral has not addressed the risk issues or resulted in adequate support for the young person

Social workers assessing UTLAH must consider any case direction provided by a SWSM or SWM when making further decisions, particularly about UTLAH eligibility.

They must record the outcome of these case consultations in a Social Work Information System (SWIS) report. See Conducting a social worker unreasonable to live at home (UTLAH) assessment.