A new report by Australian researchers has found that parents experiencing poverty and domestic violence are often targeted for intervention by child protection departments and the researchers say in such cases child protection departments remove children when counselling and resource allocation would suffice.
The researchers from Queensland University say inappropriate intervention in child protection cases has left many parents, especially mothers, feeling bewildered, confused and distrustful of the system.
The new research, conducted by Associate Professor Heather Douglas and Dr. Tamara Walsh from UQ's TC Beirne School of Law, suggests that child protection workers often do not have the skills or resources to support families and as a result, some children may be unnecessarily removed from their parents.
Dr. Walsh says child protection workers and parents' advocates must work together to displace the mistrust and uncertainty that is preventing more collaborative and open practices, as it is the child's interests that will ultimately suffer if there continues to be a lack of communication.
Dr. Walsh says while children should be protected, it may no longer be perceived necessary to remove children if families were appropriately resourced and their issues properly understood.
According to Dr. Wash research shows that factors such as low income, homelessness, and domestic violence are associated with poor outcomes for children and if the work of child protection authorities is to have any protective effect, child safety officers must work collaboratively with parents and children.