'Scary' child safety system in spotlight ahead of Queensland inquiry

Australia Broadcast Center

4 days ago

As Queensland's inquiry into the child safety system announces its first public hearing will begin next week, Dakota McSpadden hopes the process will overhaul the "inadequate'' system she experienced as a child.
"It never felt like care; it felt like punishment."
Ms McSpadden, now aged 20, came to the attention of child safety at the age of nine, was homeless by 13 and entered residential care at 15.
Residential care or "resi", as it is known by some, provides a environment where children as young as 12 live together under the watch of a social worker.
Ms McSpadden said it was meant to be supportive, "but it was chaos".
"People [in resi] turned a blind eye to what I was doing — I needed help … I never got consequences," she said.
"I would act out in anger because I was so scared, and I think that's what a lot of kids do."
The Sunshine Coast woman is one of many Queenslanders making a submission to the state government's review into what Premier David Crisafulli has called a "broken" child safety system.
Led by former Federal Court judge Paul Anastassiou KC, the LNP's 18-month inquiry is examining how the state supports vulnerable children, including its growing reliance on residential care.
As of July 2025, more than 2,000 children were in residential care in Queensland, up from 435 in 2015, according to government records.
Residential care becomes an option when foster or kinship placements are not available or suitable.
Typically, it is for children over 12, but the government's Residential Care Policy provides for children under 12 to be placed into residential care in "specific circumstances".
Rebecca Scott has been a foster carer for 15 years in Queensland and Victoria, and spent a year as a residential care support worker on the Sunshine Coast.
She described residential care as "confronting" and "unsafe".
In one incident, a 10-year-old held a screwdriver to her throat.
"These kids were just trying to out-tough each other."
Ms Scott said the children often perceived residential care as a rule-free option.
"They sabotage their foster homes to get into resi, then they realise it's scary, volatile," she said.
Ms Scott said upon leaving resi to start adult life, many young people were ageing out of the system without any support systems in place.
"They're turning 18, and they've got no relationship with foster carers or biological family — no one to turn to except kids they met in residential care," she said.
The experience has left her convinced that the system is failing both children and carers.
"These kids don't need more workers — they need parents," Ms Scott said.
The commission's formal opening and first public hearing is set for next Wednesday, July 23, at Brisbane Magistrates Court.
A spokesperson for the commission said it was committed to hearing from people with lived experience.
Submissions can be made online and public hearings will be held throughout regional Queensland, with those details to be released this month.
The commissioner has also had his first regional visit.
He recently met with stakeholders during a two-day visit to Townsville, "where there is a significant demand for child safety services", according to the commission's spokesperson.
It is not the first time there has been an inquiry into the state's child protection system.
Millions of dollars have been spent over the last 25 years on multiple inquiries, resulting in hundreds of recommendations being handed down.
The Create Foundation — Australia's peak body representing the 12,500 children and young people in the state's care system — hopes this process will finally result in meaningful change.
But in order for that to happen, chief executive officer Imogen Edeson said it must hear the voices of those with firsthand experience.
"They talk about coercive practices, constant staff changes, and not feeling at home. Some are left to navigate the system alone."
State Minister for Child Safety Amanda Camm also urged those with lived experience to come forward, but warned Queenslanders would be "shocked by the stories" that emerged from the inquiry.
Ms Scott, who has had 72 children in her care since 2000, intends to share her firsthand experience.
She is calling for more permanent care options, better support for foster carers, and a limit to residential care settings that lack support for young people.
Ms Scott said residential care — where there was "no consequences, no consistency" — needed more structure.
Ms Scott argued more support for foster carers "when we set rules" could reduce the number of children heading to resi.
"Let us make the mistakes … and then let us repair from them, just like a biological parent would," she said.
Reflecting on her years in residential care, 20-year-old Dakota McSpadden said having access to support workers with lived experience would make a huge difference to young people in the system.
Ms McSpadden will also be advocating for accessible and ongoing mental health support, safe spaces outside hospital, and greater peer connection and emotional support.
"If kids knew there's others going through the same thing, they could help each other," she said.
The inquiry is due to provide its final report to the state government by November 30, 2026.