Five ALAS(Adoption Loss Adult Support) and three WASH(White Adoptees Stolen Heritage) members along with other groups involved with adoption, were invited to the launch of the new Adoption Laws and Post Adoption Support Services, (PASQ) at Parliament House on 1st February 2010.
Minister Phil Reeves MP,The Benevolent Society,Mr. Richard Spencer and President of Jigsaw, Trevor Jordan spoke at the opening.
PASQ has been established with an investment of $1.2 million over three years.
Jigsaw is a government sponsored group.
Here are some of the major changes;
The Act requires a child's mother and father and every person who is a guardian of the child to freely and voluntarily consent to the child's adoption.The Act includes a number of measures designed to ensure a person's consent is both informed and given voluntarily. For example, a parent can only consent to their child's adoption after they have received written information about adoption that includes alternatives to adoption and financial support available to them. The Act requires that this information must be explained through pre-consent counselling.
In addition, the Act allows for adoption care agreements to be made for a child for up to one year, while parents consider providing consent to their child's adoption.Past experience and research indicates parents need time to consider all care options available to help ensure consent to a child's adoption is only obtained once a parent has had time to fully explore all the issues and options for their child's care.
The Act provides parents with a revocation period of 30 days from the time the initial consent to an adoption is provides. Information and counselling will be provided to parents to ensure that they understand the consent process and their right to revoke consent within this timeframe, as part of pre-consent counselling.
The new law balance people's right to information about their birth parent, son or daughter who was adopted with the right of others to maintain their privacy.
Previously more than 3000 Queenslanders affected by adoption that occurred before 1991 were prevented from obtaining identifying information about their birth parent or son or daughter who was adopted.
The new law will give these people the right to access information about their own identity or that of a son or daughter for the first time.
PASQ phone; 07 3112 5182 or 1300 914 819.
pasq@bensoc.org.au
For more information;www.childsafety.qld.gov.au
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2 comments:
Does this mean? Can we still go to volunteer groups to seek help with information?
Yes, volunteer groups will still play an important part for support.
Trust is there with the group you know and sisterhood is golden.
Marg
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