A Care Plan is a document that all children placed in out-of-home care (OOHC) have, because the Court must have one before making a final order.
The Care Plan will say what the placement ‘goal’ is (where the child will live). This will either be long term care (either in foster care or with kin), or your child coming home (restoration). Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children must also have a Cultural Support Plan that should keep them connected to their family, community and Country.
A Care Plan will include:
The Care Plan is important, because the judge at Court reads it and it tells them who your child is, what the future plans are for them and what type of Court orders are being asked for by the NSW Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ).
The care plan uses the Summary of Proposed Plan (SOPP) as a starting point. Whilst the SOPP can change when your circumstances do, such as making progress on your goals in the Family Action Plan (FAP), the care plan is final. It is the document that the Court makes all of its final decisions on.
The Children’s Court can’t make permanent changes to Parental Responsibility (PR), or certain parts of parental responsibility, until the is a care plan. It is also what should guide the work your DCJ caseworker does while your child is in OOHC.
A Care Plan should be detailed and include dates and times for things such as review or restoration. This might look like it saying what date you need to do something by, but also what date DCJ will carry out the phases of restoration. There should also be a date where you move onto the next phase. If the care plan is not detailed, work with your lawyer to change this.
You will get a copy when it is filed in Court and will have an opportunity to respond to it during Court, with the help of your lawyer. The Care Plan should be carefully inspected. If something written is untruthful, it is important to speak up for these things to be changed. You can go through the document with a pen and underline the things that are not true, or if your words or circumstances were twisted. You can either do this with your lawyer or do this on your own and then tell your lawyer the things that need to change. Some lawyers find it helpful to see the document you have written on. With your lawyer, you can ask DCJ why something has been included, and request evidence of why. You will need some sort of evidence to prove that something should not be in there.
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.
