Recommendation 255

It remains the Australian Government's position that children should not be held in immigration detention centres where possible, but should be accommodated in alternative places of detention or in the community under a residence determination.Unaccompanied minors should be routinely placed in the community under Residence Determination arrangements. Based on individual circumstances, families with children and other vulnerable people may be placed in the community under Residence Determination arrangements or may reside lawfully in the community, depending on the level of support required. The Australian Government will continue to develop and enhance its policies and procedures to support the protection of children in immigration pathways, promote their welfare, and treat their best interests as a primary consideration.

In October 2016, the Department of Home Affairs released its Child Safeguarding Framework, which outlines the principles, policies and procedures to safeguard the wellbeing of children receiving immigration services. The framework is designed to be applied flexibly across the different departmental programmes and services, and to complement the range of existing policies and procedural frameworks.

The Child Safeguarding Framework is the blueprint for how the Department of Home Affairs continues to build and strengthen its policies, processes and systems to protect children in the delivery of all relevant departmental programmes and to maintain a child's wellbeing to assist them to meet age appropriate milestones.

he Australian Government operates a generous Humanitarian Programme, including providing assisted passage, medical and related services for refugee entrants and humanitarian applicants and ensures, under policy settings, that refugee and humanitarian applicants are not excluded due to a health condition or disability. This includes ensuring that refugees and humanitarian applicants receive appropriate treatment for medical conditions prior to travel, and that arrangements are made for any required medical follow-up and specialist appointments following arrival in Australia.

All school-aged children, regardless of their immigration status, have the opportunity to access education in accordance with Australian community standards, federal legislation, and the relevant state or territory legislation for the state or territory in which they accommodated.