You can read the report on how the Commonwealth had funded its flagship child and care services, but also the research and information on the key measures of quality, performance, delivery and governance – including the number of children in care and its outcomes, which showed an improvement from 2011-12 at the time we commissioned the report.

“The state has committed more than $6.5billion to programs to ensure no child goes to residential placement [where] children are exposed to abuse, neglect or trauma. Of that $6.5billion of funding, $500m has been spent since 2012. The Commonwealth has also committed to a more efficient and effective system of managing child and care services, including improved care pathways.”

On the other hand, you can read a report from independent senator Nick Xenophon which shows the funding allocations per dollar spend have been increasing significantly since 2012.

“The numbers are in – and on our watch there will continue to be significant funding increases for our state’s key child and care services, including a $1.8 billion cut to the family and child support system, which will have major consequences for children and families,” Xenophon said at the report’s release.

“It is also important to note this is just the beginning – in fact, it has only begun. It has already been reported the Commonwealth will remove the 10th percentile point that separates the poorest families from the very best. They will take that down to $50,000 and reduce the tax free threshold for a family with one child by $2000. That is just the start of the Commonwealth cutting the support it provides to families, not just the very poorest, who are left in the cold.

“With the introduction of these cuts in February, the Commonwealth will spend almost $300 million more per year on family support than it did in the first four years of its funding. That puts pressure on the funding of early childhood care, child protection and other services.

“The fact is the Commonwealth is making decisions that will directly affect thousands of families at some stage in their lives. It is just another example of the lack of transparency and accountability in the way we spend money,” he continued.

“This is yet one more way we will be spending tax payers money which is ultimately never returned to the people who spent it. A government that is unable to account for its own spending or the allocation of funds should not be expected to administer one of our largest welfare systems.”

What are key points

government grants for new business start ups, government grants and loans for home repairs, government grants for individuals in need, free government grants for women for college, government grants for student loans