A child abuse prevention service will cease to exist as a stand-alone program, raising fears the support it provides to vulnerable families will be lost or watered down.
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The Strengthening Families Program, which the former NSW Family and Community Services Minister Pru Goward introduced in early 2012, will be absorbed into mainstream child protection services.
The state opposition and Council of Social Service of NSW have raised concerns about any reduction in the early-intervention service saying it provides vital support to prevent the need for children to be removed from at-risk families.
The opposition spokeswoman for Family and Community Services, Linda Burney, said the government was "getting rid of programs at the forefront of early intervention" at a time when the number of children reported to be at risk of significant harm is at a record 72,243. Only 19,092 of these children have been visited by a caseworker – leaving 53,151 without a face-to-face assessment.
"Without these early-intervention programs to support families, the already alarming number of children at risk will only rise and the crisis deepen," Ms Burney said.
"The Baird government has already let the problem spiral out of control, and removing these programs to prevent child abuse is another huge failure in [its] responsibility for children's welfare."
The government has confirmed the $20 million Strengthening Families initiative will "no longer exist as a separate program".
The program supports families with children under nine who are at risk of significant harm, but who are safe to remain at home if parents are helped to address specific problems. The program helps with the development of parenting skills and provides mental health support, drug and alcohol services.
NCOSS has stressed the importance of the program and has previously raised concerns about it being significantly underfunded.
Minister for Family and Community Services Gabrielle Upton said her department was incorporating the Strengthening Families into "mainstream child protection and will no longer exist as a separate program".
"Services will not be reduced as a result of the change," she said.
"This year's budget has an additional $500 million over four years on child protection, including additional resources to support the transition of out-of-home care to the non-government sector, more assistance for caseworkers and a major technology upgrade.
"Reforms like Safe Home for Life are part of the $1.6 billion the NSW government will invest in 2014-15 to keep children and young people safe and enable them to grow and reach their potential."
