Family Court judge Justice Catherine Carew points finger at Queensland Child Safety

CHILD Safety officers knew the girl went to school upset, dirty, unfed; that her mum had issues with substance abuse; that her dad was the subject of child sex complaints. So why was she returned to her family?

A BRISBANE Family Court judge says too many “at risk’’ children are slipping through the cracks and remaining in households “until something really serious happens to them”.

Justice Catherine Carew said it was time for all Australian child protection authorities and police to be given technology to easily share relevant information about such children and their parents. She said child protection departments were under-resourced and there were too few options for alternative placements for at-risk children.

“It is perhaps time to look at other options,” she said, noting that inquiries generally resulted in reports being shelved and “nothing much changes”.

Justice Carew made her strong comments in a recent judgment after learning that Queensland Child Safety thought no intervention was necessary on receiving concerning reports about a child.

The department was told in August last year the girl was frequently arriving at school upset, dirty, unfed and with ­little food, and her mother was believed to be using marijuana and alcohol.

The judge found it extraordinary the department decided to do nothing because there was “no previous child protection history” concerning the child, now nine, or her ­parents.

“This is a case where a mother has had two other children removed from her care in other states,” she said.

“The father has been the subject of police complaint on three separate occasions in other states for alleged sexual interest in unrelated children.”

The judge said had the department had access to the mother’s interstate history, the department might have taken the ­notification more seriously.

In her recent decision, Justice Carew decided the mother, 37, had failed to prove her ­allegations of sexual abuse against the girl’s father. But there was an unacceptable risk he could act that way in future, given three other complaints of alleged sexual impropriety by the father towards other unrelated children.

Justice Carew said the girl had a strong and loving relationship with her father and should continue to have supervised visits with him.

The judge reluctantly ordered the girl to live with her mother, despite finding it would probably expose her to neglect, drug use and family violence.

Justice Carew asked the department to fully assess the mother, including her drug use and history of neglect of children, stressing nothing the mother said should be taken at face value.

The judge also asked for the girl’s medical and psychological needs to be urgently assessed.