Child safety Qld: $5m dividends probed as govt to ‘go hard’ to root out residential care failings

A for-profit provider that has more than 50 kids in its care and received millions in government funding is to undergo a full forensic audit after it gave three shareholders more than $5m in dividends last year.

One for-profit Queensland provider, which cannot be named, will undergo a full forensic audit after it gave three shareholders more than $5m in dividends last year.

Corruption within the Queensland residential care sector and the potential sacking of some officials will be probed as part of a historic investigation into the industry.

It comes as the state government announces a commission of inquiry into the residential care system amid devastating increases in the number of kids in care, their treatment, and the “billion-dollar industry” failing children.

Child Safety Minister Amanda Camm said people from all sides of the industry had expressed concern about the reliance of for-profit residential care providers and the lack of regulation.

Ms Camm said if there was any chance of corruption, she wanted the inquiry to “go looking hard and find it”.

“If there is anything uncovered there that brings into the integrity of public officials, then they should be held to account,” she said. “In my time as opposition spokesperson, I had many people express many concerns about many providers that were providing services in this style of placement.

“I also had many former staff from child safety come forward with stories of concern, as well as other not-for-profit providers who were concerned about the reliance in certain parts of our state, or the preference of these services over not-for-profit services.”

Child Safety Minister Amanda Camm will today announce Federal Court Judge Paul Anastassiou will lead the 17-month inquiry into shocking failures in the $1.12bn care industry. Picture: Steve Pohlner

One for-profit Queensland provider, which cannot be named, will undergo a full forensic audit after it gave three shareholders more than $5m in dividends last year. The same organisation received tens of millions of dollars in government funding. The Sunday Mail understands it currently has more than 50 kids in its care.

Financial statements also show it upped its “management fees” by 1000 per cent.

Since 2014-15, the state government funding for Individual Placement Support – providers intended to only be short-term bridges to stable care – has increased by 834 per cent.

This year, short-term providers will cost taxpayers $766m, compared to $82m 10 years ago. In comparison, stable placement services will receive $345m this year, compared to $118m 10 years ago.

Ms Camm said how this was allowed to happen would be a focus of the inquiry.

“It has become abundantly clear to me in my first six months as Child Safety Minister that this needs to be addressed and it needs to be done now,” she said. “It is nothing short of diabolical what the Labor Party have done by not only overseeing this mess but allowing unscrupulous people to line their pockets as children in care languish.”

Originally published as Child safety Qld: $5m dividends probed as govt to ‘go hard’ to root out residential care failings