Child Abuse and Neglect: a socio-legal Study of Mandatory Reporting in Australia

Figure 1.2: Timeline showing key developments, New South Wales, 2003-2012

1.5.3. Northern Territory

1.5.3.1 Original position at 1 January 2003: Northern Territory

Community Welfare Act 1983

At 1 January 2003, the Community Welfare Act 1983 (No 76)¹⁸ contained wide mandatory reporting provisions which, uniquely for Australian jurisdictions, applied to all persons (s 14); a separate provision specifically applied to police officers (s 13).¹⁹ Section 14 required a person ‘who believes, on reasonable grounds, that a child has suffered or is suffering maltreatment’ to report it. The state of mind activating the duty was belief on reasonable grounds. Section 4(3) defined ‘maltreatment’ to include physical, emotional, psychological and sexual abuse, with a threshold of significance indicated by the concepts of ‘seriousness’, ‘severity’ and other stipulated qualifications regarding the injury caused or likely to be caused; it extended to risk of abuse and neglect to this degree (see below). It also contained a specific reference to female genital mutilation (s 4(3)(e)). Because of the definition of ‘maltreatment in s 4(3), the duty applied to abuse and neglect thought to have already occurred or to be presently occurring, and to situations where there was believed to be a substantial risk of such abuse and neglect. The maximum penalty was 200 penalty units.²⁰ Immunity from liability for making a report was provided by s 14(2). Confidentiality was indirectly protected by s 97, although this was not as clear a protection as existed elsewhere.

Under the definition in s 4(3) operating from 2003, a child was deemed ‘to have suffered maltreatment where –

1. 
   he or she has suffered a physical injury causing temporary or permanent disfigurement or serious pain or has suffered impairment of a bodily function or the normal reserve or flexibility of a bodily function, inflicted or allowed to be inflicted by a parent, guardian or person having the custody of him or her or where there is substantial risk of his suffering such an injury or impairment;
   
2. 
   he or she has suffered serious emotional or intellectual impairment evidenced by severe psychological or social malfunctioning measured by the commonly accepted standards of the community to which he or she belongs, because of his or her physical surroundings, nutritional or other deprivation, or the emotional or social environment in which he or she is living or where there is a substantial risk that such surroundings, deprivation or environment will cause such emotional or intellectual impairment;
   
3. 
   he or she has suffered serious physical impairment evidenced by severe bodily malfunctioning, because of his or her physical surroundings, nutritional or other deprivation, or the emotional or social environment in which he or she is living or where there is substantial risk that such surroundings, deprivation or environment will cause such impairment;
   
4. 
   he or she has been sexually abused or exploited, or where there is substantial risk of such abuse or exploitation occurring, and his or her parents, guardians or persons having the custody of him or her are unable or unwilling to protect him or her from such abuse or exploitation; or
   
5. 
   being a female, she –
   

1. 
   has been subjected, or there is substantial risk that she will be subjected, to female genital mutilation, as defined in section 186A of the Criminal Code; or
   
2. 
   has been taken, or there is a substantial risk that she will be taken, from the Territory with the intention of having female genital mutilation performed on her.’
   

1.5.3.2. Key changes, 2003-12: Northern Territory

The Community Welfare Act 1983 was amended by several Acts until 2007, but not substantially.²¹