Every child has the right to a safe and nurturing home, whether that is with their parents, extended family or kin, or through guardianship or open adoption.
Long-term stability and strong, meaningful relationships with caring adults are essential for children to grow, develop and thrive.
When a child cannot live safely at home, decisions about their care in NSW are made by child protection authorities and guided by a set of principles that focus on finding the most stable and appropriate long-term care option. These principles prioritise keeping families together wherever possible and supporting children to achieve permanency through preservation and early intervention, restoration, guardianship or open adoption.
You can find more information about permanency pathways on the Department of Communities and Justice website.
What are the permanent placement principles?
In the interest of children’s wellbeing, the NSW Government has established permanent placement principles to guide decisions about a child or young person’s long-term care after they are removed from their family.
The first priority is to work intensively with a child’s birth family to address the issues that led to the child entering care, with the aim of helping the child return home safely.
The primary goal of permanency planning is restoration — returning the child or young person to the care of their parents or legal guardian as soon as it is safe to do so. This requires active involvement from the birth family and support services.
The Children’s Court must decide within a defined timeframe whether restoration is possible. If it is not, other long-term care options are considered based on the child’s individual needs, including:
- guardianship with a relative, family member, or another suitable person
- adoption by a carer (usually for non-Aboriginal children)
- long-term foster care, where parental responsibility rests with the Minister
Children and young people who experience stability and permanency are more likely to develop secure relationships, a strong sense of identity and connection, and achieve better long-term outcomes.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children
Permanency is equally important for the wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people.
For Aboriginal children, the priority is always to support care within family, kin and community, helping children remain connected to their culture and identity. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle guides decisions to ensure these connections are maintained when children cannot live at home.
Carers for Kids NSW supports culturally appropriate pathways for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal carers and promotes understanding of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle.