There can be no doubt that child abuse and neglect is a serious problem within our communities. In Australia today the problem of abuse and neglect remains prevalent and serious, however there are some encouraging signs for the future.
The latest statistics from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare show that the number of reports to child protection services in Australia has been slowly but steadily declining over recent years. Part of this decline may be from greater investment in prevention strategies, which was advocated in the 12 year National Framework for Protecting Australia’s children.
This framework was endorsed by the Council of Australian Governments in 2009 and provided the foundation for national reform. The Australian Centre for Child Protection played a lead role in developing this framework, with its research cited in the outcomes.
In order to achieve our vision and goals our priorities are:
- To produce quality research that is highly relevant to the needs of the child and family welfare sector and the community.
- To disseminate our research through high impact, national and international journals, books and conferences as well as industry accessible documents.
- To influence policy and practice that impacts on vulnerable children and their families through evidence-based workforce development and training.
- To provide trusted and credible advice based on best evidence to government, industry and the broader community.
- To educate graduates who become sought after for research, policy and practice positions in the child and family welfare sector.
- To enhance the use of evidence in policy and practice in the child and family welfare sector.
- To develop excellent researchers with strong national and international profiles.
- To develop strong and effective strategic partnerships and collaborative relationships with academic institutions, governments, and the profit and not-for-profit sectors
Current research projects