Legislation Implementation
Implementing new legislation
CFKC’s systemic advocacy has played a key role in reviewing key government legislation that impacts the rights and livelihoods of South Australian foster and kinship carers.
On 12 June 2025, the Parliament of South Australia passed the Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Act 2025. The new laws are expected to come into effect in mid-2027.
Until then, the Children and Young People (Safety) Act 2017 remains in place.
Link to legislationWorking towards implementation
In the lead up to the new legislation commencing, Connecting Foster and Kinship Carers South Australia (CFKC) has been consulting with carers and contributing to the implementation design.
We will continue to seek feedback from foster and kinship carers to ensure carers’ voices are elevated and embedded in the implementation.
Guiding principles
The first area of focus of engagement was on the Guiding Principles. There are four guiding principles in the legislation:
- The safety principle
- The best interests principle.
- The active efforts principle.
- The principle of effective intervention.
More information, including a summary of this section of the legislation, is contained in this discussion paper.
What are some of the changes in the legislation which will impact carers?
Quality of Care Guidelines:
The Department for Child Protection (DCP) must now develop clear guidelines—co-designed with the carer peak body—to guide when, how and if concerns about the quality of care should be raised.
Procedural Fairness:
The Bill now mandates carers must be afforded procedural fairness in cases involving quality of care concerns—marking a significant shift from current practices, where carers are often left in the dark about decisions affecting their families.
Whole-of-Government Strategy:
The Bill mandates the development of a State Strategy for children and young people in care, with the Minister for Child Protection empowered to direct inter-agency collaboration across health, education, and human services, responding to long held carer concerns about a fragmented support system.
Recognition of the Carer Peak Body:
It is now formally recognised that the peak body for carers must be consulted in key policy developments. This means that, by law, the voice of carers is required to be considered.
Carer Statement of Commitment Enshrined:
The Statement of Commitment to Foster and Kinship Carers will now be embedded in law – reinforcing a partnership approach between DCP, the Minister for Child Protection, CAFFSA, CFKC and the carer community.
Timely Reviews and SACAT Access:
A new 60-day timeframe for internal reviews. This means that the current practice, whereby internal reviews can take an unknown period of time, addresses long-standing concerns about delays and unresolved decisions affecting placements.
Complaints Reform:
The introduction of Complaints & Feedback Management Guidelines, providing the necessary clarity regarding the management of complaints and feedback relating to decisions made under the legislation. These guidelines will be developed in consultation with peak bodies and prescribed child protection stakeholders.
Mandatory Consultation:
The legislation now requires the Minister to consult with peak bodies, including CFKC, during the mandated five-year review—ensuring carers’ voices remain central to future reform.
How we got here – timeline of legislative development and CFKC analysis
A timeline and analysis are provided at this webpage