CHALLENGES FACED BY SOCIAL WORKERS WORKING IN CHILD PROTECTION SERVICES IN IMPLEMENTING THE CHILDREN’S ACT 38 OF 2005

Authors

  • Sipho Sibanda Pretoria University
  • Antoinette Lombard University of Pretoria

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15270/51-3-452

Abstract

The transition from the Child Care Act 74 of 1983 to the Children’s Act 38 of 2005 has been chaotic. This has been caused by shortcomings in the new legislation; challenges faced by social workers in adapting to it; lack of capacity of the stakeholders in the field; and the shortage of resources to implement it. The Children’s Act 38 of 2005 needs to be amended to address its pre-statutory, statutory and post-statutory shortcomings. Recommendations on addressing these challenges include the establishment of a kinship care grant; amending the Children’s Act; and addressing technical issues on the implementation of the Children’s Act 38 of 2005.

 

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biographies

Sipho Sibanda, Pretoria University

Postgraduate student

Department of Social Work & Criminology

Antoinette Lombard, University of Pretoria

University of Pretoria
Professor Department of Social Work & Criminology

References

ADAMS, R. 2002. Developing critical practice in social work. In: ADAMS, R., DOMINELLI, L. & PYNE, M. (ed). Critical practice in social work. New York: Palgrave.

ALPASLAN, N. & SCHENCK, C. 2012. Challenges related to working conditions by social workers practising in rural areas. Social Work/Maatskaplike Werk, 48(4):367-386.

Centre for Child Law v Minister of Social Development and others. 2011a. (North Gauteng High Court) Case number 21726/11. Order of 10 May 2011, unreported.

Centre for Child Law v Minister of Social Development and others. 2011b. (North Gauteng High Court) Case number 21726/11. Order of 08 June 2011, unreported.

CHILD CARE ACT 74 OF 1983. Published in the Government Gazette (8465). Pretoria: Government Printer.

CHILDREN’S ACT 38 OF 2005. Published in the Government Gazette (28944). Pretoria: Government Printer.

Chirindza and others v Gauteng Department of Health and Social Welfare and others. 2011. JOL 27 290 (GNP).

CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA. Pretoria: Government Printer.

CRESWELL, J.W. 2009. Research design: qualitative, quantitative and mixed method approaches (3rd ed). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications.

DAWES, A. 2009. The South African Children’s Act. Journal of Child and Adolescent Health, 30(10):iv-vi. Cape Town: University of Cape Town.

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE AND CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT. 2010. Regulations Relating to Children’s Courts and International Child Abduction. Government Gazette 33067. Pretoria: Government Printer.

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT. 2006. Integrated Service Delivery Model towards improved social services. RP31. Pretoria: Government Printer.

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT. 2010. Consolidated Regulations Pertaining to the Children’s Act, 2005. Government Gazette 33076. Pretoria: Government Printer.

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT. 2011. Framework for provision of developmental social welfare services (Draft). Pretoria: Government Printer.

EARLE, N. 2008. Social work as a scarce and critical profession. Research consortium.

GREEFF, M. 2011. Information collection: interviewing. In: DE VOS, A.S. (ed) STRYDOM, H., FOUCHÉ, C.B. & DELPORT, C.S.L. Research at grass roots: for the social sciences and human service professions (4th ed). Pretoria: Van Schaik Publishers.

HALL, K. & PROUDLOCK, P. 2011. Orphaning and the foster child grant: a return to the ‘care or cash’ debate. Children Count Brief. Cape Town: Children’s Institute, University of Cape Town.

HÖLSCHER, D. 2008. The emperor’s new clothes: South Africa’s attempted transition to developmental social welfare and social work. International Journal of Social Welfare, 17(2):114-123.

LOFFELL, J. 2011. Interview with Jackie Loffell, a social policy expert who was involved in drafting the Children’s Act 38/2005 (as amended). [Transcript]. 17 August. Johannesburg.

LOMBARD, A. & KLEIJN, W.C. 2006. Statutory Social Services: an integral part of developmental social welfare service delivery. Social Work/ Maatskaplike Werk, 42(3/4):213-233.

LOMBARD, A. 2010. Integrated developmental Social Welfare. Paper presented at a National Indaba on Integrated Developmental Social Welfare Services, 3-5 February, Birchwood Executive Hotel and Conference Centre, Boksburg.

MBAMBO, B. 2004. How to ride a wave when the tide turns? Children First, 8(57):39-40.

NAIDOO, S. & KASIRAM, M. 2006. Experiences of South African social workers in the United Kingdom. Social Work/Maatskaplike Werk, 42(2):117-126.

NEUMAN, W.L. 2000. Social research methods: qualitative and quantitative approaches (3rd ed). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

NEWS24. 2011. Court order to end foster care crisis. 10 May. [Online] Available: http.//www/news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/ourt-Order-to-end-foster-care-crisis. [Accessed: 15/12/2011].

PATEL, L. 2005. Social Welfare and Social Development in South Africa. Southern Africa: Oxford University Press.

PATEL, L. 2008. Getting it right and wrong: an overview of a decade of Post-Apartheid Social Welfare. Social Work in Action, 20(2):71-81.

PROUDLOCK, P. & DEBBIE, B. 2011. Implementing the Children’s Act: analysis of human resource capacity and constraints. Cape Town: Children’s Institute, University of Cape Town.

PROUDLOCK, P. & JAMIESON, L. 2008. The Children’s Act: providing a strong Legislative foundation for a developmental approach to child care and protection. Cape Town: Children’s Institute, University of Cape Town.

REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA. 1996. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. Act 108 of 1996. Pretoria: Government Printer.

REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA. 1997. Ministry of Welfare and Population Development. White Paper for Social Welfare. Government Gazette, Vol. 386 (18166). Pretoria: Government Printer.

REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA. 2007. Proclamation 13; Children’s Act (38/2005): Commencement of certain sections. Government Gazette No 30030. Pretoria: Government Printer.

RUBIN, A. & BABBIE, E. 2011. Research methods for social work (7th ed). Belmont: Cengage Learning.

SEPTEMBER, R. & DINBABO, M. 2008. Gearing up for implementation. A new Children’s Act for South Africa. Practice: Social Work in Action, 20(2):113-122.

SIBANDA, S. 2013. Challenges faced by social workers working in child protection services in implementing the Children’s Act 38 of 2005. Pretoria: University of Pretoria. (MSW Mini-Dissertation)

SOUTH AFRICAN COUNCIL FOR SOCIAL SERVICES PROFESSIONS. 2013. February/March 2013 Newsletter, 2(2). [Online] Available: www.sacssp.co.za [Accessed: 27/04/2013].

SOUTH AFRICAN INSTITUTE OF RACE RELATIONS (SAIRR). 2012. Social worker shortage undermines effectiveness of social welfare legislation. [Online] Available: www.sairr.org.za [Accessed: 14/08/2012].

UNICEF. 1990. First call for children. New York: UNICEF.

UNITED NATIONS GUIDELINES FOR THE ALTERNATIVE CARE OF CHILDREN. 2009. [Online] Available: www.iss-ssi.org/2009/asserts/filesd/guidelines. [Accessed: 29/11/2011].

UNITED NATIONS. 1989. United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. UN General Assembly Document A/RES/44/25. New York: UN.

VAN NIEKERK, H.J. 1998. Child welfare legislation and practice. Durbanville: Van Gent Publishers.

WEXLER. R. 2003. The road less travelled by: towards real reform for child welfare in Missouri (2nd ed). Alexandria VA: National Coalition for Child Protection reform. [Online] Available: http://www.nccpr.org/missourireport5.doc [Accessed: 24/08/2010].

Downloads

Published

2015-09-09

How to Cite

Sibanda, S., & Lombard, A. (2015). CHALLENGES FACED BY SOCIAL WORKERS WORKING IN CHILD PROTECTION SERVICES IN IMPLEMENTING THE CHILDREN’S ACT 38 OF 2005. Social Work/Maatskaplike Werk, 51(3). https://doi.org/10.15270/51-3-452

Issue

Section

Articles

Most read articles by the same author(s)

<< < 1 2 3 > >>