One-third of 15- and 16-year-olds have been reported to Government Child Protection Agencies at least once in their life because of concerns about neglect or abuse, official figures show. And the proportion of 12- to 14-year-olds and 17-year-olds reported is almost as high at 32 per cent. The startling figures may be the highest in the developed world, according to a leading expert on child protection, Dorothy Scott, the director of the Australian Centre for Child Protection at the University of South Australia.

The high reporting rate - which excludes double-counting of children notified more than once - is revealed in a new report by the evaluation and statistics branch of Community Services NSW, now part of the larger Department of Human Services. The report shows steep increases in the proportion of children being reported in every age group since a similar report was done four years ago. But experts question whether the figures indicate the real level of harm, gross over-reporting, or new parenting standards.

Overall more than one in four children under 18, or 26.7 per cent, had information about them kept on a database. Four years earlier 19 per cent of all children under 18 had been reported. Most parents would not know that their children had been reported and their details recorded as only a small proportion of cases is ever investigated. For example, in 2008-09 there were 309,676 reports to the department but only 40,000 received a secondary assessment, and only 10,142 children were eventually found to have experienced ''actual harm''.

Professor Scott said the ''astounding'' reporting figures were the result of placing a ''misguided reliance'' on a child protection authority as the first port of call for people worried about children's safety and welfare. ''It's like having everyone with a health problem front up to casualty rather than having access to a GP,'' she said. ''And by overwhelming your 'casualty department' you reduce its capacity to respond to those who really need help.''

Frank Ainsworth, senior principal research fellow adjunct at James Cook University, and a child protection authority, said big numbers of parents had been caught in the child protection net because they could not reach the higher parenting standards now expected, and were not getting enough help.  ''In another era, even earlier in this era, they would not have been pushed into the system,'' he said. State laws have required some professionals such as doctors, teachers and police to notify Community Services of children they consider at risk of harm.

 

The huge numbers being reported, especially by police called to domestic violence incidents led to the 2008 Wood Commission of Inquiry. Six months ago a new child protection system was established. Under the new system, the threshold for reporting to Community Services has been lifted to children at risk of ''significant'' harm. Anne Maree Sabellico, acting deputy chief executive operations in Community Services, said the information about families was confidential and accessed only for serious cases.

Australians are very sensitive to sexualised advertisements that target young people according to recently released research by the nation's advertising 'regulator', the Advertising Standards Bureau (ASB). The research tested community reactions to 22 ads from TV, radio, print, outdoor and internet channels. It consisted of a survey of 1207 people and two focus groups. Colmar Brunton Social Research conducted the research on behalf of the ASB, and produced the report 'Community perceptions of sex, sexuality and nudity in advertising'.

A major finding of the research report was that, "Respondents were unanimously sensitive to ads containing sexualised representations of teenagers and children, modelled on 'sexy' adults. The sexual innuendo and undertones within ads featuring and directed at young teenagers was also seen to be highly unacceptable". Responding to the research, ASB CEO, Fiona Jolly said that, "a number of the Board's decisions appear to be more liberal than community expectations suggest they should be."

Despite the research showing people were concerned about the portrayal of sex and nudity in advertising, Ms Jolly defended the self-regulation of advertising which she said were "broadly aligned with the views of the community". Social commentator Melinda Tankard Reist disagreed, saying that the growing number of ads which sexualise children demonstrates the failure of self-regulation. What the research really shows is that the advertising industry, if left to its own devices, is unable to curb its natural inclination to continually push the boundaries of acceptable content.

 

Rather than reflecting community standards, advertisers appear more determined to set the standards, often at a very low level. It is clear that self-regulation has proven to be a flawed 'safeguard' against the excesses of the industry.

 

The independent member for Sydney, Clover Moore has introduced a private members bill to legalise homosexual and lesbian adoption. A final vote on the Bill will take place when the Parliament resumes later in the year. NSW Premier Kristina Keneally has granted Government MPs a conscience vote on the issue and has indicated her personal support for the bill. Opposition MPs have also been granted a conscience vote on the bill.

 

In expressing concern for the Bill the NSW Director of the Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) said "Children born to a parent who was now in a same-sex relationship should have any real or perceived disadvantage remedied without the need to change adoption laws. ACL does not wish to see any child disadvantaged. A raft of changes to Federal and State laws in recent years had dealt with discrimination affecting children in same- sex families and if there were any remaining areas these should be looked at separately from adoption laws.

"However, it is important that where the State must intervene on behalf of babies and children that it ensures the human right to at least begin life with both a mother and a father is not expunged from our legal system and our culture," Mr Hutt said. "The rights of a child must always come before the lifestyle choices of adults," Mr Hutt said.

"Despite all the law reform of the past couple of years to assist same sex couples and their children from previous heterosexual relationships, it seems the political agenda of the gay and lesbian lobby will not be satisfied until two men or two women are allowed to acquire babies or young children by adoption," Mr Hutt said. Mr Hutt said many people in NSW would be disappointed by Premier Kristina Keneally's support for the bill. "NSW politicians must show courage on behalf of vulnerable children and ensure they have the human right to a mother and a father."