Initial Monitoring Report
Agency compliance with Regulations 69 and 85 of the Oranga Tamariki (National Care Standards and Related Matters Regulations)
Summary
The four agencies have policies and processes to facilitate compliance with Regulations 69 and 85 which relate to reports of abuse and neglect of children and young people in care.
All four agencies made enhancements to their internal self-monitoring and quality assurance processes to enable compliance with the National Care Standards Regulations.
All four agencies stated that responses to cases of abuse or neglect of Māori children and young people in care or custody are largely done on a case by case basis, with Oranga Tamariki having made a significant number of practice enhancements to consider responses to Māori.
In response to Regulations 69 and 85, for the three-month reporting period, children and young people in the care of Barnardos and Dingwall Trust did not disclose any incidents of abuse or neglect and therefore testing their compliance with those regulations was not required. Open Home Foundation had three allegations of abuse and neglect for children in care and Oranga Tamariki had 335.
From the information provided and the accountabilities Open Home Foundation is responsible for, its practice is complying with Regulations 69 and 85.
Oranga Tamariki is partially compliant with all aspects of the regulations being monitored. Its policies, procedures and practice guidance provide adequate information to support full compliance.
In relation to the partial compliance by Oranga Tamariki, the information provided states the responses to allegations were mostly timely at the initial safety screen however the timeframes were not met consistently when completing assessments or investigations into the allegations. There were some data recording errors that required amendment and the child or young person was not always informed of the outcome of the investigation, if appropriate, as required by the Regulation.
The information provided by the agencies outlines how they will comply with the National Care Standards Regulations as well as ensure enhanced outcomes for children and young people in their custody and care. This information is relevant as it demonstrates the agencies’ commitment to aim to achieve compliance from 1 July 2019.