s of gaps in child protection are presented in this report. Although it is acknowledged that Australia has made measurable progress in the past five years, severe discrepancies in child protection are measured which violate the precepts of the Convention.

In order to improve their performance in protecting all children, this report recommends that the Australian government do the following:

Incorporate the Convention comprehensively into Australian law
Create a comprehensive National Plan of Action for Children and Young people, in partnership with children and civil society
Establish an independent National Children’s Commissioner

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This Report Card assesses how the needs of children are incorporated into local, state and national emergency management plans in Australia.

There is currently a lack of consistent emergency management planning for the unique needs of children in Australian emergency management plans. This has resulted in the needs of children not being considered in many instances until problems arise during the relief and recovery phases of the emergency, leaving children particularly vulnerable.

Several recommendations are provided in this report card. These are addressed to the governing bodies in charge of forming child protection strategies in emergencies. Some examples are:

Specific planning for the unique needs of children should be incorporated as a matter of urgency into all emergency management plans at all levels of government.
Emergency management planners should consider ways to engage with children to allow them to contribute to plan development and implementation.
All risk assessments contained in emergency management plans should be reviewed with a child lens to ensure that risks and hazards are assess in relation to the unique vulnerabilities of children.