This is an edited version of the keynote address given by Dr Dorothy Scott at the 6th Australasian Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect – Dialogue, Dreaming, Decisions – which was held in Adelaide on 20–23 October 1997.

This article is an overview of the experiences of non-offending fathers of children who have been sexually assaulted. It looks at the relevant literature and draws on the author’s work in a rural Centre Against Sexual Assault to highlight aspects of these men’s emotional reactions following trauma to their child.

The effectiveness of current support services for families who have a child with a progressive life-threatening illness seems to be a frequently overlooked issue. This paper, which is based on the findings of a recently conducted study, attempts to elucidate the critical issues in supporting this unique group of families. The study examined the perceptions of families regarding the value and effectiveness of the social supports available in the community for families caring for a child with a life-threatening illness in Victoria. Attention has been drawn to perceived gaps in support for these families. Also considered is the effectiveness of supports available for bereaved families who have lost children with life-threatening illnesses. The study was based on information provided by families who had been involved with a family support agency known as Very Special Kids.

Research findings from a study of 500 cases carried out as part of a doctoral thesis will be outline. They demonstrate the clear connection between those families whose children are notified in relation to all kinds of child abuse (including sexual abuse) and poverty, unemployment and family disruption. The multi-factorial nature of the influences which create this connection are examined. The long held belief that child sexual abuse is not related to class or poverty is challenged by these findings, pointing to the need to reconceptualise this, as well as all types of child abuse, if prevention is to be an achievable goal.

The theme of this paper is the central role of consumer groups in promoting greater accountability in child protection systems. In recent years, numerous Australian authors have drawn attention to the failings of our State child protection systems. Particular concern has been expressed about the potential ‘systems abuse’ of children in care, and the failure of statutory systems to engage or adequately consider the perspectives of biological parents. One of the principal reasons for these deficits appears to be the absence of formal consultation mechanisms with consumers of protection services. This paper considers the recent rise of consumer groups of both young people in protection and care, and their parents/caregivers, in relation to the above concerns, with particular reference to Victoria. Attention is drawn to both the strengths and weaknesses of the better known groups such as the Australian Association of Young People in Care and their State affiliates, and the Parent Inquiry into Child Protection. The author believes that the role of consumer groups as a ‘watchdog’ will become even more important with the intended privatization of some State child protection systems.

This article is about program evaluation for child and family services. It sets out to offer some basic frameworks for thinking about program evaluation and about the issue of program effectiveness. A rationale for the emphasis on effectiveness is identified and then linked to three areas of possible measurement. These areas, changes in user/client condition, quality of services provided and user/client satisfaction, are then considered in more detail. Finally, it is argued that service users/clients will gain from program evaluation exercises. The evaluation of services contributes potentially to an improvement in the effectiveness of child and family services so service users/clients obtain benefit from such evaluations.

Translating great novels to the small or large screen inevitably involves the loss of some of the insights gained from the written word and the creation of a new world. Some novels appear to be written with screen translations in mind. Others appear to be impossible to translate. In this article The Kiss, by Kathryn Harrison, is reviewed. The book provides beautifully written insights into the painful world of emotional and psychological child abuse, anorexia and bulimia. There are other important messages in the work, not the least being those that we can learn about the isolation that an abused child can suffer. Such abuse can prepare (or groom) children for later abuse as an adult.