This edition provides an update on implementation of the Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Act 2025, outlining recent progress and upcoming consultation and planning to support commencement in July 2027.

Since the Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Act 2025 received Royal Assent in June 2025, the Department for Child Protection (DCP) has been developing a high-level project plan to coordinate the bodies of work required over the next few years to operationalise the new legislation and associated regulations. This project is being led by the Legislation Implementation Team, within the Office of Professional Practice.

During this planning stage, the project’s governance arrangements have been established including a DCP Project Control Group to oversee, guide, and ensure the successful delivery of the project, and a Chief Executive Governance Group Sub-Committee to support implementation of those parts of the legislation that have across government impacts. An analysis of the new legislation has also been undertaken and DCP Activity Leads have been identified to lead the delivery of discrete implementation activities. In addition, a stakeholder mapping exercise has been completed and a Communications Plan developed, with some initial communications sent to key stakeholders. The project planning phase has now concluded, and the team has moved into the project implementation stage.

Stakeholder communications and engagement will be a key focus throughout this next stage of the project. Central to implementation is ensuring people with experience and expertise are involve in the process. DCP will be providing opportunities where people can participate and share their views such as through established groups with DCP and our external partners, participating in workshops, via surveys, and providing feedback on YourSAy.

If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at DCPLegislationImplementation@sa.gov.au

The current legislation commenced in 2018 and was phased in across two stages. It also required a review after five years. The review concluded in 2023, with more than 900 people providing feedback including children, young people, families, foster and kinship carers, government and non-government partners, advocates, the legal profession, peak organisations and oversight bodies.

These contributions were consolidated into a report which  outlined options and proposals for consideration to improve South Australia’s child protection legislation, which ultimately supported the development of The Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Bill 2024.

The new legislation applies to people and entities including:

• children and young people, including those identified as being at risk of harm, in care, and leaving care parents, carers (including foster and kinship carers), and guardians of children and young people identified as being at risk of harm, in care, and leaving care
• approved carers, licenced foster care agencies, licensed children’s residential facilities, state residential care facilities, and recognised Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander entities
• organisations that deliver programs, services, and activities to children and young people, including other government entities, corporate businesses, and non-profit organisations
• employees and volunteers of organisations involved in the delivery of programs, services, and activities to children and young people
• independent persons / entities specified in the legislation

Whilst the Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 12 June 2025, it will not come into effect until a date for commencement is proclaimed. At that point the current Children and Young People (Safety) Act 2017 will be repealed. Until then the 2017 CYPS Act and associated regulations remain in place.

The new Act introduces a number of changes to help transform the Child Protection and Family Support System including:

• introducing four guiding principles to be upheld in all decisions relating to children and young people: Best Interests Principle; Safety Principle; Principle of Active Efforts and Standard of Active Efforts; and Principle of Effective Intervention
• expanding Parliamentary recognition of children and young people to include:
  • the impacts of laws and policies that led to the Stolen Generation,
  • the State’s responsibility to implement measures to safeguard and promote the cultural identity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people, and
  • the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as documents which inform the Act.
• amplifying and strengthening the voices of children and young people in decision making
• providing Statements of Commitments to children and young people, parents and families, and foster and kinship carers
• recognising peak bodies to represent the interests of certain sections of the community
• increasing the reporting threshold for mandatory notifiers to significant harm, and recognition of exposure to domestic violence as a cause of harm
• enshrining a public health approach focussed on a whole of government and community response to children and young people
• developing a State Strategy for the Safety and Support of Children and Young People.

The Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Act 2025 presents a range of opportunities to further support children, young people, and their families including:

• introducing a Best Interests Principle to be upheld and effected in all decisions relating to children and young people (Section 11)
• ensuring children and young people are provided with the information they need to make informed decisions, and amplifying their voices in prescribed decisions (Section 14)
• giving consideration to the need for children and young people to maintain a connection with their family and culture, and giving weight to the importance of maintaining sibling contact (Section 143)
• setting out the wishes and preferences of children and young people, and parents and families in case planning (Section 133)
• including a Leaving Care Plan in Case Plans for all young people over 15 (Section 133)
• recognising a peak body for children and young people and their families to represent their interests (Section 38)
• introducing a Statement of Commitment to Children and Young People in Contact with Child Protection and Family Support System (Section 17)
• introducing a Statement of Commitment to Parents and Families (Section 18)

The Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Act 2025 presents a range of opportunities to improve outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people and their families including:

• cementing the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle as the key mechanism by which the best interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child and young people, and their families can be realised (Section 49)
• introducing additional considerations relating to the best interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people such as child rearing practices, the need to provide opportunities to maintain and build their identify, and connections to their family, community, culture, and country (Section 52)
• introducing a principle of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander family-led decision making (Section 51) and increasing family group conferencing for Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander children and young people and their families (Section 57)
• requiring the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle to be implemented to the standard of active efforts to the satisfaction of the Court prior to certain orders being made (Section 60)
• setting out the wishes and preferences of children and young people, and parents and families in case planning (Section 133)
• requiring Contact Arrangements Review Panels to be constituted of a majority of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people, including the presiding member, when reviewing contact arrangements for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people (Section 64)
• requiring Case Plans for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people to include a cultural maintenance plan setting out how the cultural needs and identity of the child or young person are being, or will be, met with input from the child or young person, and their family and community (Section 62)
• requiring at least 1 Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person to be included in panels reviewing the circumstances of certain Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people (Section 65)
• introducing the potential to delegate certain functions to Recognised Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Entities (Section 54)
• increasing accountability through annual reporting requirements including a whole part related to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people (Section 25) and all parts of the State Strategy to specifically address Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people (Section 67).

The Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Act 2025 presents a range of opportunities to further support foster and kinship carers including:

• ensuring carers are provided with the information they need to make informed decisions, and that their voices are heard (Section 140)
• including carers in the whole of government and community partnership approach (Section 20)
• recognising a peak body for foster and kinship carers to represent their interests (Section 38)
• including the Statement of Commitment to Foster and Kinship Carers (Section 19)
• introduction of Quality of Care Report Guidelines that ensure the provision of procedural fairness (Section 29).

The Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Act 2025 presents a range of opportunities to strengthen accountability and consistency including:

• developing a State Strategy for the Safety and Support of Children and Young People which includes parts setting out intended outcomes and measures, roles and responsibilities, and collaborative approaches, with each part specifically addressing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people (Section 67).
• increasing annual reporting requirements including a whole part related to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people (Section 25)
• enhancing requirements to satisfy the Courts before certain orders are made for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People (Sections 60 & 61)
• introducing Complaint and Feedback Management Guidelines that ensure procedural fairness is provided (Section 30).

Representatives from relevant government agencies, as well as non-government organisations, will be directly involved in the development of some procedural and policy changes. They will be invited to participate in working groups that will be established in preparing and planning for the changes.

We will use various methods to communicate updates and milestones through media, newsletters, targeted engagement opportunities, forums and meetings throughout the implementation phase. Information sessions will be held as the commencement date nears, which will focus on sharing what has changed, what it means and who will be impacted.

DCP’s website will be regularly updated on the progress of implementation activities. Sometimes we will reach out to advise of the changes, and sometimes we will ask stakeholders to reach in and work with us to help develop and design the best way forward.

It is critical we understand the best ways to effect change, and we have committed to working with key stakeholders throughout the implementation period. Your feedback can help shape the way we work for children, young people and families.

To do this effectively, we will adopt an inclusive approach with stakeholders comprising awareness, engagement, planning and collaboration, early implementation, and review.  We have already established several forums where we work with children, young people and our partners, however some of the changes will need specific groups to be brought together.  It is important people with experience and expertise are involved in the process, and will we be providing opportunities where people can participate and share their views.

DCP is committed to ensuring policy changes that impact the lives of Aboriginal peoples are developed in partnership with Aboriginal peoples and we will observe co-design principles which support participatory decision-making, as outlined in the South Australian Government’s commitment to the National Agreement on Closing the Gap.

As well as listening to feedback throughout the implementation phase, we will check in regularly with staff, oversight bodies, peak bodies, sectoral partners and other key stakeholders, to gauge the effectiveness of newly adopted changes. DCP’s commitment to sustainable engagement will ensure the changes are having an optimal impact on children, families, and communities.

In addition, the Minister and Chief Executive will report annually on the operation of key aspects of the legislation and the new Act contains a requirement to review the operation of legislation as soon as is practicable after the fifth anniversary of commencement.

Written feedback or questions can be emailed to DCPLegislationImplementation@sa.gov.au to the team coordinating the Legislation Implementation project.