A dream come true – no more residential care. A corrective note

This note is about the attempt by the Australian State and Territory child care and protection systems to do without residential programmes. It traces the process of moving to this position and the historical and policy imperatives that supported this service direction. It also outlines the consequences of the absence of 24 hours-a-day 7-days-a-week residential education or treatment programmes for difficult and disturbed young people. It is both a cautionary and corrective note designed to underline the need for some specialised and highly selective residential programmes as part of any mature child care and protection system. This is something that Australia forgot.