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Casey is just 17, but child abuse and neglect have robbed her of a childhood. Since leaving her family at 16, Casey has spent her days in search of crisis accommodation and trying to find a job to support herself. She worries about finding a home and wants to get custody of her younger sister. “I no longer dream about going to uni because I am too worried about being fed and clothed.” Casey told a national child abuse and neglect conference yesterday that most Australians would never understand how difficult it was for her and others just like her. And she criticised the state of refuge services in the ACT. Since leaving her small hometown for Canberra, Casey said she been forced to phone around more than 20 refuges in an attempt to secure a roof over her head. She said the refuges were too under-staffed and under-resourced to deal with the issues young people brought with them. “There is not enough support, either emotional or financial, for young people who have no option but to leave home, and refuge workers need more training to deal with the situation,” she said. The Australian Democrats yesterday called for a Royal commission into child abuse in order to “investigate the actions of the past, protect children in the future, and assist victims and families to move forward”. Leader Andrew Bartlett told the conference that “children have a right to have a secure childhood, free from the devastation of abuse, family violence and neglect”. He said a study issued this week found that 53,800 children were homeless or at imminent risk of homelessness, and that almost half of those children were under five years of age. “For years governments have chronically under-funded the systems meant to protect children. We have produced an entrenched culture that fails children, and prevents them getting the protection they need,” he said. Greens MLA Kerrie Tucker said if Australia was to improve the well-being of its children then the issue of abuse and neglect needed to be looked at in all its complexity. “Safe, secure and affordable housing is just as important in any preventive strategy as providing parent training courses or well-trained and supported child-protection workers,” Ms Tucker said. ACT Liberal Senator Gary Humphries said while the responsibility for children's welfare rested primarily with state and territory governments, the Commonwealth's approach was to focus on prevention and early intervention. He said working in cooperation with the states and territories was the key to good outcomes. More work was needed to pool resources and knowledge and set up more coordinated services.
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