“I didn’t get a summary for a proposed plan for over a week… I went over it, highlighted the bits that I didn’t agree with, wrote them down. Then I started basically writing my own shit in a notebook… shit that they were saying that wasn’t true or that I didn’t agree with.”
– Parent, Bring Them Home, Keep Them Home research
– Parent, BTHKTH research
A Summary of Proposed Plan (SOPP) is a document that should tell you why a child has been removed. It is a document that says where your child will be living and what DCJ say the risks are and the goals you need to achieve to address them. It must take into account the permanency placement hierarchy (in considering what the goal might be early on in the proceedings) and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principles.
In outlining placement and contact plans, it must consider section 13 placement principles. The SOPP does not change. It is a “moment in time” document. It is a starting point for other documents that DCJ file later.
A Summary of Proposed Plan will be made within two weeks of interim orders being made. DCJ needs to submit the SOPP to the Children’s Court of New South Wales. You will get the opportunity to review and respond to the document.
A SOPP is important and should be carefully inspected. If you believe something written is untruthful, or a goal to be unrealistic, it is important to speak up for these things to be changed. This could be done with your lawyer and support service.
You can ask why something has been included, and request evidence of why certain things need to be done. For example, if they said the risk was Domestic and Family Violence (DFV), but they asked you to do relationship counselling, ask them why they have made someone else’s decision to use violence your risk and your responsibility. This is important because what is written in the SOPP will be in the FAP, which outlines what you are obligated to do.
“I even said [to caseworker] I was hoping to speak with you about a few things before the DRC… as there are few things in the summary of proposed plan that I feel aren’t relevant to [child] or care proceedings, along with a few things that I’m hoping to get changed. If you could please get back to me that would be much appreciated, thank you.”
– Parent, Bring Them Home, Keep Them Home research
If a requirement that you’ve previously argued against does show up in the Family Action Plan (FAP), you can work with your service provider to try and remove it based upon your previous reasons.
One of the mums in the research said that before she even got given her SOPP, she was doing everything she could to get ahead of the game. She said:
“Because when I lost my son…I basically said, fuck you. I said, I’m going to get my son back in a few months, and I thought, okay, what can I do?
“…I paid for an online course, Nourish Baby, from zero to 12 months; smashed it out in two days, sent [caseworker] the proof… Then I just started calling up rehabs… I was just like, I’m a young Indigenous woman, my son’s just been taken. You need to bring me in now…
“They were like, we’ll call you back for an intake on this date. Call me back the next day, done an intake. Then they called me back not even a few days later and was like, you can come in, you’ve just got to organise a detox. So I organised a detox.”
– Parent, Bring Them Home, Keep Them Home research
AbSec and our partners acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout NSW and their continuing connections to land, waters, and communities. We also acknowledge the lands on which these stories were told, the lands of the Dharawal, Yuin and Wonnarua people.
We acknowledge the Elders, leaders and advocates that have led the way and continue to fight for our children. We also acknowledge the Stolen Generations who never came home and the ongoing impact of government policy and practice on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, young people and families.
This website shares the experiences and advice of Aboriginal families involved in the NSW child protection system who participated in the Bring Them Home, Keep Them Home research at UNSW. We acknowledge and thank the families who generously gave permission to share their stories.
These experiences reflect what worked for those families and do not constitute advice or views of AbSec. AbSec recommends seeking independent legal advice for your own circumstances.
