Parentline
Georgie CROZIER (Southern Metropolitan) (12:27): (993) My question is to the Minister for Children. Minister, Parentline has been in operation for 25 years, providing crucial early intervention in a number of areas, including for families in crisis and those affected by family violence, parents raising neurodivergent children or children with behavioural challenges, first-time parents experiencing anxiety and being overwhelmed, carers and extended family members who step in to support children at times, families in rural and regional Victoria with limited face-to-face services, and culturally and linguistically diverse families facing systemic barriers as well as other things. What was the annual cost of running the service?
Lizzie BLANDTHORN (Western Metropolitan – Minister for Children, Minister for Disability) (12:28): I thank Ms Crozier for her question. I know that it is substantially similar to the question of the Greens party earlier, but as Ms Crozier has correctly identified, Parentline did for a long time support particularly families who might have been facing some difficulties. But it is really important to consider that since our government came to office we have invested not just in a phone line but in a range of services across the board to families on their parenting journey from maternal and child health through their early years and into schooling that provide parents and families with support. Since our government came to power we have tripled the investment of those opposite in family services. For example, when those opposite were in power, they oversaw around 9470 unique families supported by family services. As I highlighted when I was responding to Dr Mansfield’s similar question to that of Ms Crozier, in 2024–25, 19,604 unique families received support from the family services portfolio. So we will not be lectured by those opposite. We have increased funding to family services threefold.
Georgie Crozier: On a point of order, President, my question was very specific: what was the annual cost to run Parentline? It was a very simple question. I did not need a repeat of the answer to Dr Mansfield. I just asked that question. I would ask you to ask the minister to come back to answering that very simple question.
The PRESIDENT: I will call the minister back to the question.
Lizzie BLANDTHORN: Ms Crozier in her question, and indeed in her very long and thought-out preamble, referred to the various cohorts of families which are supported through the breadth of our family services system and those services beyond the very specific family services system, where we have tripled investment – as I said, threefold. In the time in which we have had Parentline in operation the services system has evolved considerably, and it includes the family services that I spoke about; it includes the 24/7 maternal and child health line; it includes an online directory of essential services and programs to help throughout the parenting journey; it includes the Orange Door, which provides support for people experiencing family violence, as Ms Crozier drew attention to –
David Davis interjected.
Georgie Crozier: On a point of order, President, to go to Mr Davis’s interjection, it is a simple question about how much, and I would ask you to ask the minister to answer that very simple question.
The PRESIDENT: There have been rulings before about the expectation of a minister having a degree of detail at hand. On every program I do not know if the minister could up-front quote an amount, but I will bring the minister back to the question.
Lizzie BLANDTHORN: Ms Crozier in her question did draw attention to particular cohorts that may have otherwise been supported by Parentline, and what I am seeking to address is that element of her question which went to those cohorts. She also spoke about carers who might seek the support of Parentline, and in the time in which we have had Parentline we have had the evolution of the carers help desk, for example, which also supports those who are caring for children in the out-of-home care system. Across the breadth of services in which we have invested in the parenting journey, from the early years in maternal and child health, in our early parenting centres, where we have extended the network to 13 –
Nick McGowan: On a point of order, President, on a number of occasions member Crozier has asked a very specific question in relation to the operating budget of Parentline. I appreciate the minister’s answer in respect to the other aspects, but the question is very narrow, very specific. On relevance, I ask you to bring the minister to order.
The PRESIDENT: I do not know about bringing the minister to order, but I can bring the minister back to the question, so I will bring the minister back to the question.
Lizzie Blandthorn interjected.
Georgie CROZIER (Southern Metropolitan) (12:32): It is extraordinary that the minister responsible for this important area does not have a clue about what the government has provided in running that essential service. Minister, there has been an increase in babies born in growth corridors, and over COVID we know that the maternal and child health nurses could not see families and left those vulnerable families lingering. Still, in many areas maternal and child health nurses are not getting to those vulnerable families, so what advice did you receive to have funding cut to the vital service of Parentline, leaving thousands of vulnerable children and parents without support?
Lizzie BLANDTHORN (Western Metropolitan – Minister for Children, Minister for Disability) (12:33): It appears that Ms Crozier does not understand the difference between the maternal and child health phone line, which is a 24/7 phone line that has been operating for more than a hundred years, right here from Treasury Place – and as I will update you in my ministers statement, just yesterday I was meeting with those amazing nurses down there at the maternal and child health nurse phone line. There have been a number of different phone lines, there have been a number of different services, but what we are seeking to do as a government is ensure that from the very beginning – from the maternal and child health stage with things such as our maternal and child health line supporting all of those families who are having babies to our early parenting centre network, which we are growing from three to 13 across the state – we are supporting families with their maternal and child health journey and we are supporting them on their extended parenting journey in the different ways in which they might need support in the different ways in which on that rewarding journey they may also find themselves in some challenging circumstances. We have a suite of services, a breadth of services that are able to cater to the demands of those families, be they out-of-home care families using our carers help desk or be they – (Time expired)