‘Line in sand’: record state-care kid numbers revealed

Andrew Stafford | July 30, 2026

A state has revealed the number of children in residential care has hit a record high, marking a “line in the sand” for an under-fire minister.

The number of kids aged under five in care in Queensland has also risen in a blow to Child Safety Minister Amanda Camm, who has promised to remove them from the system.

The damning data landed on Thursday as the Queensland government responded to 52 recommendations made in a Child Safety Commission of Inquiry final report released in June.

The Liberal National government has accepted 32, saying they would be injecting $200 million to implement them within 30 months.

Another 16 have been accepted in principle, with the state government vowing to overhaul the “broken” system.

The 11-month inquiry’s report exposed years of systemic failure, revealing no child had been adopted from state care since 2019.

Data was released coinciding with the government’s response on Thursday, revealing 2819 children were under state care – up from 2258 a year ago.

The number of children under five years old in the system has also increased in the last 12 months, from 78 to 107.

Ms Camm had announced kids under the age of five would be removed from state residential care when the inquiry report was tabled in June.

The minister on Thursday said the record number of kids in residential care revealed in the latest data marked a “line in the sand”.

“I will be marked on that,” she told reporters.

“That is the line in the sand, and that is my message to Queenslanders.

“It’s why we have embarked upon an ambitious recruitment process for foster and kinship carers across this state.”

She defended the 30-month time frame to implement recommendations, after Paul Anastassiou KC’s child-safety inquiry report suggested the issues be remediated within a year.

“There are complex changes that need to be considered by government,” she said.

“Those changes impact the court system, the statutory systems and legislation.”

Other recommendations were already being implemented or were being fast-tracked, she said.

Child-safety workers are holding a vigil outside the state parliament on Thursday afternoon ahead of Ms Camm’s appearance before the Budget Estimates committee.

The workers’ union welcomed the government’s response to the child-safety inquiry that included early intervention, reduced reliance on residential care, and proper workforce investment.

However, Together Union warned kids in Queensland care couldn’t wait 30 months for reform.

“Today’s data is a reality check,”  the union’s assistant secretary Dee Spink said.

“More very young children are living in residential care. Only one in four priority assessments is being completed on time. 

“Those are not the signs of a system that can afford to wait another 30 months.”

In his report, Mr Annastasiou described the state’s child-safety system as “intransigent”, noting that the problems dated back decades, with three separate inquiries since 1999.