While rates of teenage pregnancy have been declining in the general population, rates for young parents with experience of Out of Home Care (OOHC) and other vulnerable young people are disproportionally high and have remained stable over time. Moreover, young people with experience of the care system are more likely to parent young, their children are more likely to enter the child protection system in turn, and they are likely to experience repeat removal of more than one child.
While research into this cohort is limited, there are opportunities to intervene, to either prevent early pregnancy, or to support young care leavers to parent successfully. Effective interventions and support for this cohort represents both an investment into the social capital of these young lives, and those of their children, and the targeted use of resources to prevent intergenerational contact with the system and its associated high cost.
The Australian Government Department of Social Services commissioned ARACY to research and explore ways of reducing the number of young parents in the care system, and help break the cycle of intergenerational care experience. This report presents recommendations that we hope can begin to address the needs and desires of young parents with a care experience; to make informed choices about when and how they become parents, to bring up their babies, create their own strong families, and live well with their children. It incorporates the findings and recommendations from Australian and international research and literature on young parents with experience of OOHC, and interviews with researchers, practitioners, advocates and care experienced young parents themselves. It aims to increase our understanding of the experience and needs of these young people and provide an overview of the policy and practice recommendations that may lead to a reduction in the incidence of intergenerational interaction with the child protection system.
Part of this work has been to improve support for young people as they leave care, through the Towards Independent Adulthood trial, the National Standards for Out of Home Care, work to map legislation and policy across jurisdictions, and other initiatives.
