Department for Child Protection wrongfully remove children from loving and supportive home using deceptive tactics causing trauma to both the children and the mother. Department for Child Protection manipulated the mother into signing a 24 hour safety plan allowing the children to stay with the maternal grandmother overnight on August 2 2021. The meeting was held on August 3 2021 where they placed the children aged 2yrs and 3 months at the time under a section 41. The department did not give the mother a copy of the safety plan that was signed nor state her rights upon sectioning the children and did not give the mother court documents until 5pm august 9 2021 for court at 10am august 10 2021. Excuses were made as to why documents were not prepared within 24 hours of removal and reports were not filed with the court until august 5 2021. The department refuse to increase time spending with the mother, only allowing 2 hours per week for contact. the youngest child is 4 months old now and was still receiving breast milk. The department refuse to allow the mother to send breast milk to the 4 month old child and placed the child on formula. When questioned about where in the policy it states the child can not receive breastmilk, the social workers were unable to provide a response. The department also separated the children into two foster homes, breaking the attachment between the children and with the lack of visiting rights, have also broken down the attachment between both mother and children. Studies show the significant and long term impact of children who have been wrongfully and suddenly removed from their mothers.  When a child is removed their body floods with cortisol, a stress hormone and are overwhelmed with feelings of stress and abandonment leading to long term psychosocial effects and damage to the white matter in the brain and the development of the amygdala causing long term issues that include, but are not limited to mental health issues, cardiovascular issues, learning disabilities and attachment disorders later in life (https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/what-separation-from-parents-does-to-children-the-effect-is-catastrophic/2018/06/18/c00c30ec-732c-11e8-805c-4b67019fcfe4_story.html?noredirect=on

https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/110/39/15638.full.pdf

https://dsnlab.web.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/12535/2016/07/Gee-et-al.-2014.pdf

The Minister for Child Protection has begun an investigation into the Department for Child Protection into the wrongful removal and Connie Bonaros from Legislative Council is assisting the mother at this time.

A petition has been set up to advocate for the return of the children and to ask the Department for Child Protection to allow the reunification of the children with the mother.