12-year-old girl to become mum

12-year-old girl to become mum


The New South Wales Department of Community Services (DoCS) has admitted it could have done more to help the parents of a 12-year-old girl who is now pregnant in the state's far west.


The girl's father reportedly called DoCS about his concerns that his ex-partner was allowing their daughter to sleep with her 15-year-old boyfriend. He has told a Sydney newspaper he is angry that DoCS did not intervene earlier.

The department has released a statement saying it is working closely with the family and admitting that more intensive case work could have been done.

The Community Services Minister, Linda Burney, says resources were over-stretched. But she says the department should have stepped in earlier. "There was some investigation but clearly not enough was done and I want to acknowledge that," she said. "At the time, I'm advised, that the father made the call to Community Services expressing his concern in terms of competing priorities, it was determined that there were other cases more urgent."

But the Opposition's spokeswoman for community services, Pru Goward, says it is an outrage. "There are always very many challenging cases for DoCS, but there are ways that this could have been dealt with that would not have been resource-intensive," Ms Goward said. "That is what community organisations are for. That's why Commissioner Wood in the Wood report said 'work with the not-for-profit sector, give them the work'."

The New South Wales Commissioner for Children, Gillian Calvert, says the girl has been failed by a number of people and government agencies.
Ms Calvert says that it is clear the mother, who was mentally ill, also needed help. "There were clearly issues of compromised parenting," she said. "There were things that parents could've done to prevent this situation from occuring. Now some parents, where they're compromised, can't do that. "They need services and assistance to strengthen their parenting. And I think that is the other part of what has been missing in this."

http://www.abc.net.au/

The thing I think is weirdest about this story is that it has somehow become Child Service's problem, no one is pointing the finger at the mother who allowed her 12 year old daughter to have a 15 old boyfriend, and not only that but have them live together and allow them to sleep in the same room.

12 year olds shouldn't be dating, they should have boyfriends and they definately shouldn't be allowed to have sleep overs with boys.

Am I being archaic in my thinking? Is this how the world works now?

DoCS are also in trouble over this incident:



Condoms given to girl, 12, with STD

A 12-YEAR-OLD girl was given a "party pack" of condoms and lubricant after she was diagnosed with chlamydia at a DOCS medical appointment.

The girl's family said police refused to act even though their daughter and the boy were under the age of consent. Instead, DOCS sent the girl to the state-funded Warehouse Youth Health Centre at Penrith. Yesterday her parents said they were angry that their daughter was prescribed the contraceptive pill at the clinic, which features "condom stuffing" competitions and "safe sex party" pictures on its Facebook page.

Yesterday the girl called her safe sex kit, which includes 20 condoms, a "party pack".

"She doesn't understand. She has attention deficit disorder and a mild intellectual disability," her father said. "Even if she did consent, she is too young to know what consent is."

A Warehouse spokeswoman yesterday said the website photographs were from a party the service helped promote at a university.

A spokeswoman from the Western Sydney Joint Investigative Response Team - made up of DOCS, police and NSW Health officials - said, "while we understand the girl's parents found this confronting, DOCS must be guided by experts and the long-term health needs of the girl."
http://www.news.com.au/

I don't quite understand this story, the parents are upset that she was given condoms, yet she was diagnosed by Children Services, so this means they had to intervene with the parents somehow.

Again, how does a 12 year old girl get an STD in the first place? If she's having sex, sure I think give her condoms and give her information about the pill. but if she's disabled, how the hell is she having sex? Who is allowing this to happen? How can the parents be outraged that she was given condoms if they're the ones who are allowing her to have sex?

I just don't get it.

The first one it says the mother has a mild mental disorder or something, so that could partly explain that (she's probably also a houso, so that'd also explain it).

This second one... well, it's a hard one. Child Protective Services or whatever the hell they are cannot actually sit by and watch the kids 24/7, so it's more up to the parents to make sure they're doing the right thing. The parents seem outrage, so I can't understand how they let the girl get an STD in the first place.