Published on Thursday 7 September, 2023

Lifestyle Solutions acknowledges the recommendations from the Mitchell review into emergency out-of-home care. We accept that the care provided to the children in this matter did not meet the expectations of the community or acceptable standards.

As a human rights based, not-for-profit service provider, we strive to deliver services that create safety and empowerment for children and young people. We are consistently applying learnings to ensure our services exceed the standards we would all expect for children and young people in care, and indeed in our communities.

We acknowledge the review’s finding of the systemic and complex challenges facing out-of-home care, particularly around workforce skills shortages, the dearth of foster carers and the lack of suitable housing for children in the out-of-home care system. We continue to address these issues in our services and in collaboration with the sector.

As a community, we have a collective responsibility to ensure every child in our communities feels safe and well cared for. We look forward to continuing this important work with the NSW Minister for Families and Communities and affirm our commitment to collaborating with children and young people, the Department of Communities and Justice and relevant industry peak organisations.