Child and Family Focus SA

14/10/2026

Meet Junction Australia's Irene Stanford and Jackson Tanner 👋🏽

The duo are finalists in the Thriving Sector category of the 2026 SA Child Protection & Family Support Awards, demonstrating outstanding leadership through their work at Marltarra, Australia's first tiny homes campus supporting young people leaving care.

Well done, Irene and Jackson and best of luck at the awards on 9 October 🥳

Award sponsor: Child and Family Focus SA

07/10/2026

Thank you to Child and Family Focus SA (CAFFSA) – sponsor to our upcoming HDA Symposium: Evidence to Action and 22nd Annual Oration on 18 November!

CAFFSA amplifies the voices of children, young people, and families. As a South Australian peak body, we partner with and represent the NGOs and ACCOs dedicated to supporting and nurturing children, young people, families, caregivers and communities.

Our members contribute to evidence about early intervention, out-of-home care and reunification: what early support families need, what helps services respond well, and where system settings can support better outcomes.

CAFFSA’s advocacy highlights the case for investing earlier. Member-informed analysis by DHS and BetterStart indicates intensive family support can prevent children entering care, returning $1.86 for every $1 invested. We have also supported cost-benefit analysis for the Home Stretch SA initiative, demonstrating that extending support for young people leaving care until 21 could return $3.25 for every $1 invested.

Our Research Network provides a forum for members and partners to share evidence, practice and sector development themes and emerging research and gaps. This network enabled CAFFSA to build a clearer picture of the SA family support and child protection context, including through the SA in Focus report and 2026 ROGS analysis.

Our current Empowering Reunification Practice Project is developing an evidence-informed view of best practice in family reunification. Analysis indicates reunification can return $14.80 for every $1 invested. This matters in SA, where reunifications are often sustained once children return home, but fewer children and families are offered reunification, compared with other jurisdictions.

Learn more: www.childandfamily-sa.org.au

01/10/2026

You may have heard that Thriving Kids launches nationally today. The SA government announced its implementation plan for Thriving Kids yesterday, withe the aim of supporting kids aged eight and under with developmental delay and/or autism and low to moderate support needs.

As Thriving Kids was announced at the National
level as part of the broader reforms to NDIS, it is important to reassure concerned families you may be working with that:

✅ there is no change to NDIS eligibility until the start of 2028
✅ children aged 8 and under who are already in the NDIS at that point will remain subject to existing rules
✅ children with permanent and significant disability and with high support needs will remain eligible for the NDIS.

Families can also access other key resources launching today including the new Thriving Kids Autism Helpline (1300 654 789), which will provide autism-specific information, guidance and connections to relevant supports and services. It will operate Monday to Friday from 8.00 am to 7.00 pm and will be accessible through the National Relay Service for families who are Deaf or hard of hearing.

Some important clarifications:

Children will not need a diagnosis to access either general or targeted supports. Assessment can be part of early childhood intervention best practice where it helps practitioners determine the appropriate response given the developmental needs of a child and family circumstances. However, the emphasis will be on earlier and easier access to help for families and children.

Thriving Kids is not intended to be a new service system like the NDIS was established to be.

Instead, the approach is intended to

✅ build on what already serves families, and enhance that service offering to be better adapted to the needs of families of children who require extra support for their development

✅ invest in building out extra supports families can more easily access

✅ better connect families to what already exists, such as preschool, which we know makes a significant difference for children’s development.

Child and Family Focus SA has been and will
continue to be a strong advocate for getting implementation of Thriving Kids right and both the national and state government levels. Children and young people with disabilities are over represented in out of home care in SA and across the country. This tells us families very much need quality supports to provide the best possible environments for their kids to flourish.

If you’d like more information about the broader parameters of the program, this is a good short read:

The government is rolling out its Thriving Kids program on 1 October as part of its NDIS reform. Here's what will and won't change.

19/02/2026

29/09/2024

Whether it’s for the weekend, respite support for carer families, short term or longer term, you can help .

To find out more visit www.fostercare.sa.gov.au

Department for Child Protection SA
Connecting Foster & Kinship Carers - SA Inc
Child and Family Focus SA

04/09/2024

01/09/2024

Today we’re giving a big shout out to the finalists of the Outstanding Service Award – Sector Development category for the 2024 SA Child Protection Awards.

This category celebrates new, innovative research or resources that support the child protection and family support sector to improve outcomes for children connected with care.

The finalists are:
- Centacare, Unify Family Reunification Services
- Goodstart Early Learning and Thinka, Safeguarding Children Learning Initiative
- Flinders University Institute of Mental Health & Wellbeing, Mockingbird Family Researchers.

Thank you to Child and Family Focus SA for sponsoring this award.

Go to childprotection.sa.gov.au/awards to see all the finalists.

Winners will be announced on Friday 6 September.

23/08/2024

CAFFSA’s 3 Quick Question’s is back and it really got us thinking. Kerry Beck, the Director of Safer Family Services with the SA Department of Human Services reminds us what child protection is – with a broader definition than the one we box ourselves into. Kerry’s generosity and candour also really got us thinking about how our personal histories can shape not only how we think and work, but also the empathy and compassion that is the key to successful work in any part of this field. Thanks Kerry!

07/06/2024

This week’s ‘3 Quick Questions’ features Jackie Bray, Chief Executive of the Department for Child Protection 🌟

Hear about her journey, her vision for the sector, and what drives her passion every day!

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