What has been achieved so far?
In the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH), the Information Sharing Team (IST) is responsible for managing requests under the Child Information Sharing Scheme (CISS) and the Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme (FVISS).
The IST oversees information sharing practice in DFFH and promotes a consistent approach to the 10,000 plus requests we expect to receive under the schemes this year.
While the IST predominantly deals with requests for Child Protection information, we are a central point in the department to support operational practice for the prescribed DFFH workforces (including Housing, Refugee Minor Program, The Orange Doors and Forensic Disability among others). This support includes providing guidance to departmental staff on other information sharing pathways where we can when the request falls outside of the CISS and/or the FVISS.
What is happening now?
The IST:
- receives requests for Child Protection information from Information Sharing Entities (ISEs) via an online webform and triages the requests to ensure they meet scheme thresholds - ISEs can request Child Protection information via the digital request form. For non-CP, please find further information about the schemes at Who can share information under the information sharing and MARAM reforms webpage.
- responds to requests on closed child protection matters or refers requests to Child Protection Practitioners where open to the client/family
- provides practice advice & guidance to departmental staff for responding to requests (including a dedicated Information Sharing Intranet site which contains resources like Frequently Asked Questions, response examples and case studies). For further information about the schemes for internal staff please see our intranet site. For external staff please see further information about the schemes at Who can share information under the information sharing and MARAM reforms webpage.
In addition, the IST also is leading the Information Sharing Implementation Project (ISIP) to strengthen the use of the CISS and FVISS and understand the various information sharing arrangements across DFFH.
What is planned next?
The project aims to:
- clarify pathways and accountabilities for information sharing arrangements.
- have a specific focus on the department’s prescribed program areas
- understand the operational challenges and complexities to support information sharing capabilities across the department
- strengthen information sharing practice across the department, including the provision of expert advice and development of tailored operational guidance across the prescribed program areas.
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