Types of Childrens Court orders
- Temporary Assessment Order (TAO)
- Temporary Custody Order (TCO)
- Court Assessment Order (CAO)
- Directive Order (DO)
- Protective Supervision Order (PSO)
- Transition Order (TO)
- Short-Term Custody Order (STC)
- Short-Term Guardianship Order (STG)
- Long-Term Guardianship Order to the Chief Executive (LTG-CE)
- Long-Term Guardianship Order to a suitable person (LTG-O)
- Permanent care order (PCO)
Temporary Assessment Order (TAO)
Sought when Child Safety is assessing if the child is in need of protection.
The order can provide for the immediate custody of the child; authorise medical treatment; restrict contact with a parent.
Who has custody?
Child Safety
Who has guardianship?
Parent
Maximum duration: 3 days
May be extended for up to 1 business day if Child Safety intends to apply for a Court Assessment Order (CAO) or the Office of the Director of Child Protection Litigation (DCPL) intends to apply for a child protection order.
Temporary Custody Order (TCO)
Has the same purpose as the TAO above, however is used when Child Safety has already decided that a child is in need of protection.
Who has custody?
Child Safety
Who has guardianship?
Parent
Maximum duration: 3 days
May be extended for 1 business day if DCPL intends to apply for a child protection order.
Court Assessment Order (CAO)
May be sought when Child Safety is still assessing if the child is in need of protection and a longer period of time is required to complete the assessment.
The order may grant custody to Child Safety; authorise medical treatment; direct how much supervised time a parent or other person can have with the child.
Who has custody?
Child Safety
Who has guardianship?
Parent
Maximum duration: 28 days
An application to extend the order up to 28 days can only be made once.
Directive Order (DO)
The least intrusive child protection order. It directs a parent to do or not do something to protect a child. This order can also direct a parent or other person to only have supervised contact with a child.
Who has custody?
Parent
Who has guardianship?
Parent
Maximum duration: 1 year.
Protective Supervision Order (PSO)
Allows Child Safety to supervise the child's wellbeing and protection while the child remains in a parent's care.
Who has custody?
Parent
Who has guardianship?
Parent
Maximum duration: 1 year.
Transition Order (TO)
Allows Child Safety to facilitate the child's transition from care to their parent's care; and allows time to make sure the family is protecting the child before the child protection order ends.
Who has custody?
Child Safety
Who has guardianship?
Parent
Maximum duration: 28 days.
Short-Term Custody Order (STC)
This order is suitable when the case plan goal is to reunify the child with their family.
The order can grant custody of the child to Child Safety or a suitable family member.
Who has custody?
Child Safety or a suitable family member
Who has guardianship?
Parent
Maximum duration: 2 years.
Short-Term Guardianship Order (STG)
This order is suitable when the case plan goal is to reunify a child with their family but the family is unable or unwilling to make significant decisions about the child's care.
Who has custody?
Child Safety
Who has guardianship?
Child Safety
Maximum duration: 2 years.
Long-Term Guardianship Order to the Chief Executive (LTG-CE)
This order is suitable when the child cannot be safety reunified with their parent and long-term care would best protect and care for the child.
The order will grant long-term guardianship to Child Safety.
Who has custody?
Child Safety
Who has guardianship?
Child Safety
Maximum duration: Until the child is 18 years old.
Long-Term Guardianship Order to a suitable person (LTG-O)
This order is suitable when the child cannot be safety reunified with their parent, and long-term care would best protect and care for the child.
The order will grant long-term guardianship to or a suitable family member, or other suitable person.
Who has custody?
A suitable family member or other person
Who has guardianship?
A suitable family member or other person
Maximum duration: Until the child is 18 years old.
Permanent care order (PCO)
This order is suitable when a child cannot be safely reunified with their parents and the child requires a permanent home that can provide them with stability as well as physical, relational and legal permanency. This order will only be made if the Childrens Court is satisfied that the permanent guardian will meet their obligations under a PCO, which includes preserving the child’s identity, relationships with their birth family and connection to their culture of origin.
Who has custody?
The permanent guardian
Who has guardianship?
The permanent guardian
Maximum duration: Until the child is 18 years old.
If you require any further information about the legislative changes as they relate to permanency and the permanent care order, refer to the document ‘Frequently Asked Questions for carer and care services’ on the Child Safety legislation page.