Queensland Consolidated Acts

CHILD PROTECTION ACT 1999 - SECT 5BA

5BA Principles for achieving permanency for a child

(1) The principles stated in this section are relevant to making decisions about actions to be taken, or orders to be made, under this Act.

(2) For ensuring the wellbeing and best interests of a child, the action or order that should be preferred, having regard to the principles mentioned in sections 5B and 5C , is the action or order that best ensures the child experiences or has—

(a) ongoing positive, trusting and nurturing relationships with persons of significance to the child, including the child’s parents, siblings, extended family members and carers; and

(b) stable living arrangements, with connections to the child’s community, that meet the child’s developmental, educational, emotional, health, intellectual and physical needs; and

Example—

living arrangements that provide for a stable and continuous schooling environment

(c) legal arrangements for the child’s care that provide the child with a sense of permanence and long-term stability, including, for example, a long-term guardianship order, a permanent care order or an adoption order for the child.

Note—

See sections 62 and 64 about the restrictions on the duration or extension of child protection orders granting custody or short-term guardianship.

(3) For this Act,
"permanency" , for a child, means the experience by the child of having the things mentioned in subsection (2) (a) to (c) .

(4) For deciding whether an action or order best achieves permanency for a child, the following principles also apply, in order of priority—

(a) the first preference is for the child to be cared for by the child’s family;

(b) the second preference is for the child to be cared for under the guardianship of a person who is a member of the child’s family, other than a parent of the child, or another suitable person;

(c) if the child is not an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child—the next preference is for the child to be adopted under the Adoption Act 2009 ;

(d) the next preference is for the child to be cared for under the guardianship of the chief executive;

(e) if the child is an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child—the last preference is for the child to be adopted under the Adoption Act 2009 .

Notes—

1 See also section 5C for the additional principles that apply for administering this Act in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, including the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child placement principle.

2 For the principles that apply for administering the Adoption Act 2009 , including the additional principles applying in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, see sections 6 and 7 of that Act.