The State Guardianship Fund (SGF) is established under section 177 of the Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 (CYFA) to manage funds received for a child or young person for whom the Secretary has sole parental responsibility. A child or young person may receive money from an inheritance or compensation.
Decisions relating to the management of the child or young person’s account are case planning decisions and should be considered in the child or young person’s case plan. However, delegates who can endorse decisions to release funds held in the SGF are subject to the Financial Management Act 1994 Instrument of Authorisation and include the Director, Child Protection or Area Executive Director as appropriate. Further information on this is available on the Delegations and Authorisations page.
Procedure
Case practitioner tasks
Establishing an account
When the Secretary receives money on behalf of a child or young person for whom the Secretary has sole parental responsibility, Child Protection must make arrangements for the money to be paid into a SGF account and held in trust for the child by establishing an account. Note that certain funds received as compensation for a child or young person for whom the Secretary has sole parental responsibility may be held elsewhere, for example funds may be held on trust by a trustee appointed by the Court, compensation relating to a transport accident are held by a trustee company determined by the Transport Accident Commission and compensation received by a child or young person who is a victim of crime are held by the Supreme Court of Victoria.
- Seek endorsement from a team manager to place the money in the SGF in consultation with the central office operational team. Their contact details can be found in secure contact details. State Guardianship Fund secure contact details
- Complete the ‘Request to establish State Guardianship Fund account’ form. The origin of the funds must be clearly recorded. Request to establish State Guardianship Fund account form
- Send the completed form to the central office operational team. Their contact details can be found in secure contact details. State Guardianship Fund secure contact details
The central office operational team will arrange for Accounting Operations to email the State Guardianship Fund BSB and bank account number to the child protection practitioner to communicate to the legal representative, or person wishing to transfer money on behalf of the child or young person to the SGF.
- Upload a copy of the ‘Request to establish State Guardianship Fund account’ form to CRIS in a case note titled “State Guardianship Fund account”.Request to establish State Guardianship Fund account form
- Update the child or young person’s case plan in CRIS to record financial planning in the ‘actions table’, detailing the money held in trust in the SGF.
Managing an account for open cases and case planning
Decisions and actions relating to the SGF need to be considered as part of the child’s case plan and leaving care plan.
- Check the details of the funds held in the SGF in CRIS in the current Case via the ‘Client Details’ icon which contains the ‘Guardianship Funds’ tab.
- Provide a copy of the quarterly statement (uploaded to CRIS by the central office operational team) to the child where appropriate, considering the child or young person’s age and stage of development.
- Consider providing a copy of the statement to the child or young person’s carer if the child or young person is subject to a care by Secretary order or long-term care order where the permanency objective is permanent care or long-term care.
- Record these decisions in the child or young person’s case plan under ‘other significant decisions’.
Aboriginal Children
If the child or young person is authorised to an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation (ACCO) under section 18 of CYFA, the Aboriginal Children in Aboriginal Care (ACAC) provider would make decisions regarding the management of money held in trust in the SGF as part of the case planning process. However, the release of funds will require approval of a delegate of the Secretary.
Managing closed cases and requests to access funds for a child under 18 years
If the child or young person has not yet turned 18 and the Secretary ceases to have sole parental responsibility for the child, (for example the child or young person returns to live with their family, or transitions to a permanent care order) a case planning decision is required regarding money held for the child or young person in the SGF. This may be paid to the child or young person or, in circumstances where it is assessed to be in the child or young person’s best interests, the funds can be retained in the SGF until the child or young person turns 18. Examples may include funds to purchase an expensive musical instrument, or travel with an overseas exchange program.
Consideration should be given to whether releasing funds to a child or young person under 18 years could lead to misuse of funds.
There are a number of tasks the child protection practitioner must take when a child or young person has returned to parental care, or has transitioned to a permanent care order:
- Provide a copy of the quarterly statement to the child or young person, their parent or guardian upon request.
- Assess any request by the child or young person or their parent to access their funds.
- Seek legal advice if required from Legal Services branch.
- Assess the request and make a determination based on whether it has been demonstrated that the request is in the child or young person’s best interest, on a case-by-case basis.
- Prepare a memorandum to seek the written endorsement of the delegate (Director Child Protection or Area Executive Director).
- Contact the central office operational team who will liaise with Accounting Operations to transfer the funds.
Transferring a child or young person’s funds to an interstate jurisdiction
If a child or young person moves interstate and their protection order is transferred to that jurisdiction, consideration should be given to whether the child or young person’s funds should be sent to the receiving state or territory in accordance with arrangements in place to administer funds of this nature.
Most interstate Child Protection jurisdictions delegate the management of funds held on behalf of children to their equivalent body of the State Trustees. Account keeping fees are applied to these funds, so consideration could be given to retaining funds with low amounts in Victoria in the SGF. This should be done in consultation with the receiving state jurisdiction and the child or young person’s parent or guardian as appropriate.
- Provide the contact information of the child or young person’s allocated child protection practitioner in the receiving state to the central office operational team, who will arrange the transfer of funds to that state.
Process to release funds when a child or young person turns 18 years
Prior to turning 18, the child must be notified of the amount held in their State Guardianship Fund account. The following process must be completed to transfer funds from the State Guardianship Fund to a young person when they turn 18 years.
- Confirm leaving care planning incorporates returning the child or young person’s funds.
- Arrange financial planning for the child or young person, particularly for amounts over $5,000.
- Prepare a memorandum (summarising the origins and circumstances of the funds held in trust in the SGF on behalf of the child or young person) and obtain written endorsement from the delegate, (Director, Child Protection or Area Executive Director).
- The memorandum must include the following completed attachments:
- Authority to release form Authority to release form (signed by the delegate). The delegate’s signature on this document provides the statutory authority pursuant to section 177 of the CYFA to release funds held in trust for the client.
- Client Request for release of funds form Client request for release of funds (to be completed and signed by the client to record their personal and bank account details).
- Copy of the client’s birth certificate (to provide 1 of 2 forms of personal identification).
- Copy of the client’s photo identification (to provide 2 of 2 forms of personal identification).
- Copy of the client’s bank statement (to provide bank account details verified by the client’s banking institution. Note transactions and account balances may be removed).
- Send the scanned approved memorandum and attachments to the central office operational team, who will liaise with Accounting Operations.
Supervisor tasks
- Provide ongoing supervision and consultation.
- Review the memorandum and support the practitioner to complete as required.
- Review permanent carer assessments, case plans and leaving care plans to confirm a child or young person’s SGF has been considered and documented as required.
Team manager tasks
- Review the ‘Request to establish State Guardianship Fund account’ form and submit to the appropriate delegate for endorsement. Request to establish State Guardianship Fund account form
- Review written memorandum requests to release money from the State Guardianship Fund to young people turning 18 years and submit to the appropriate delegate, either the Director or Area Executive Director, Child Protection for endorsement.
Director / Area Executive Director, Child Protection tasks
- Review and approve the memorandum for transfer or release of funds.