As a developing professional organisation, the college is truly multidisciplinary and aims to contribute to the debate on child and family preservation whilst striving for excellence in practice.

The conference theme ”Quality Counts” reflects the emergence of a new industry within Australian Child and Family Protection systems, one of audit and quality control. Members of the College are keen to hear the diverse views of the Australian child and family protection system workers. The theme of the conference provides an opportunity to explore all the dimensions of practice implications as formalised quality systems are implemented in child and family welfare. Equally, with greater control mechanisms, comes compliance cost and these costs should also be considered and debated by practitioners in the child and family welfare arena. For the first time in Australia’s history there is the development of a national consciousness around protecting children and families. The conference provides an opportunity to explore what we are protecting and from whom?

A sub theme celebrates the work undertaken by both statutory and non-government providers in supporting vulnerable Australian children and their families. There is little critical reflection in the public domain about the positive economic and social benefits of Australia’s child and family protection systems. This conference provides an opportunity for the professions to explore ways and means of counting the impact.

Both theory and practice will be explored in sessions and workshops and poster presentations will also be supported at the great Rydges venue in South Bank Brisbane.
Vulnerable Young People

An important sub-theme of the conference seeks to engage those with a particular youth/adolescent focus, either academically and operationally, and will seek to explore and highlight the service system, political and economic issues pertaining to the often-forgotten place of vulnerable young people in our communities and human services systems.

The emergence of a National Child Protection framework along with the creation of ‘National Office for Youth’ under the Minister, the Honourable Kate Ellis, provide a timely backdrop for this opportunity to create new understandings, opportunities and new directions for our vulnerable young people.