The Metro IFS teams attended the 2026 Statewide Practitioner Communities of Practice Forum held at the Morphettville Racecourse on Tuesday. This was the largest gathering to date, with 366 attendees from NGOs, Government agencies, and ACCOs coming together to strengthen shared practice and collaboration across the sector.
The focus of the forum was Cumulative Harm on Children – “Harm Grows Quietly”, highlighting the often hidden and escalating nature of cumulative harm within child protection practice. The forum reinforced the importance of applying a cumulative harm lens across all assessments, interventions, and ongoing practice responses with families.
Discussions acknowledged that the level of risk and complexity presenting within families has significantly increased, with practitioners seeing higher-risk referrals and multiple intersecting challenges impacting child safety and wellbeing. Presenters provided valuable insight into responding to these complexities in practice, including understanding when concerns escalate beyond family support interventions and require referral back to the Department for Child Protection for statutory or legal intervention.
A strong theme throughout the forum was the importance of robust, reflective practice, with the reminder that families simply “being known” to services does not automatically mean children are safe. Practitioners were encouraged to continuously assess risk, safety, and the cumulative impact of harm over time, rather than viewing incidents in isolation.
There were also powerful conversations around the importance of “making children visible” in all aspects of practice. This includes ensuring children’s voices, experiences, presentation, and developmental needs remain central to assessments, planning, and intervention work as family practitioners.
The forum further explored how cumulative harm often develops gradually through repeated exposure to neglect, domestic and family violence, substance misuse, instability, trauma, and unmet developmental needs. While single incidents may appear low-level in isolation, the ongoing pattern and impact over time can have profound and long-lasting effects on children’s safety, attachment, development, identity, and wellbeing. The importance of early intervention, culturally responsive practice, collaboration, and professional curiosity were highlighted as key components in identifying and responding to cumulative harm effectively.
