Carer denied certificate

Autistic child locked on balcony, tribunal hears

A FORMER Townsville carer who locked an autistic child on a balcony because she couldn’t deal with their “outburst” has been refused the reinstatement of her foster care certificate.

The carer, whose name was not provided in a Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal decision, took on the Department of Children after it decided not to renew her certificate of authority as a carer.

But the QCAT report stated the right decision had been made, after evidence of cannabis use, mental health issues, and inability to cope with the high needs of an autistic child bubbled to the surface.

The woman became a carer in January, 2019, and four months later two children were placed in her care, including one with autism.

The children were provided with a “loving” home by the carer, fully supported by their biological mother, and became attached to her for the 11 months they were together.

But evidence aired at the tribunal said the carer struggled to cope with the child’s autism, even locking the child on a veranda when they had an “outburst” and telling a child safety employee that home was “more stress free” without the child there.

Just four months after taking in the children, the carer made “threats” to relinquish care of the kids.

An external assessor, commissioned by her foster care agency, said this was a red flag.

“It would, in (the external assessor’s) view, be traumatising them again,” the judgment said. “Threats to relinquish care … raised concerns for the emotional stability of the children as they would start to feel unsure, unwanted and it would bring on more grief and loss and all the types of things that children in care already experience.”

The carer struggled with mental health issues, including PTSD, and was using cannabis to deal with her anxiety.

The carer said she never used it around the children, but the judgment stated the effects of tiredness and “impaired cognition” were long-lasting.

“In our view, (name omitted) use of THC is likely to affect (their) ability to care for children in her care, particularly young children with special needs or difficult behaviour,” the report read.

The woman said the lack of support from her foster care agency was to blame for her inability to cope.

The carer claims she made repeated requests for respite, but they were never granted. But other evidence states the carer put the autistic child in daycare for at least nine hours a day, five days a week.

“It appears that (the carer) found it difficult to manage (the child’s) behaviour despite … having access to respite, though not as often as she would have liked,” the report read.

The QCAT decision stated that the “correct” and “preferable” decision was made to refuse the renewal of the carer’s certificate.

She can still apply for certification in the future.