Children

1
Childrens Bill

• Presentation to the Portfolio Committee on
  Childrens Grants
• Department of Social Development
• 9/2/2005

2
Constitutional Issues

• Welfareconcurrent function
• Social Security/Social Assistance national
  competency

3
Child Care Legislation

• Law Commission initiative superceded by time and
  events
• Social security no longer a concurrent function
• Report on comprehensive social security

• Cabinet review of comprehensive social security
• Extension of the CSG to children age 14 years

4
Child Support Grant
AgeNo. of children No.children(CSG) Coverage
0 7yrs -7342999 3625540 49
8-9yrs -1960372 1104989 56
9-10 yrs -1059165 441465 42
10-11yrs -1044502 314961 30
11-14yrs -2958242 Effective-1/4/05
15-18yrs -4008632
Total 18373912 5486955 30
5
Care Dependacy and Foster Child Grant
Total No.of Child. Foster Child Grant of Pop.
18373912 241633 1.32 345 increase in take up rate between 98-2004
Care Depend.Grant
18373912 85817 0.5
6
Proposed Grants

• Child Grant
• Foster and court ordered kinship care grant
• Informal kinship care grant
• Adoption grant.
• Subsidies for ECDS

• Emergency Court grant
• Supplementary special needs grant
• Grant for assistive devices
• Fees for NGOs
• Subsidies for NGOs

7
A Child Grant-Universal

• Issues should it be confined to poor
  children-means tested- or be universal.Fiscal
  constraints will support means test.
• Universal grant could compromise poor children.

• Child Support Grant meets the requirement. Must
  be increased to children between 15- 18 years.
  Could be done progressively.Policy in place.Will
  require cabinet approval.

8
Foster Child Grant

• Informal kinship grant.Not sure why preference
  should be given to informal kinship over
  caregivers in CSG.
• Should preferably retain CSG in these
  circumstances.

• No new policy shifts.
• Eligibility criteria expanded to include kinship
  previously excluded. Only requirement for grant
  is court order. No impact on present grant. May
  impact court processes.

9
Adoption Grant

• Understand the rational. Why should adoptive
  parents be given preference over natural parents.
• Can qualify for CSG.
• If amount is pitched at FCG amount,could be
  fiscally constraining.

• Adoption should be an issue of choice rather than
  incentivised.
• Could address this issue by standardising all
  grants for children based on cost of basic needs.

10
Special Needs Grant

• Children with mild to severe disabilities.
• Chronic illnesses.
• Supplemented with other grants.

• Given to parents and caregivers.

11
Emergency Court Grant

• A child or family that experiences distress as
  outlined in section 345 can qualify for social
  relief of distress which can be awarded for a
  period of 6 months as opposed to 3 as proposed.

• Furthermore the whole family can qualify for
  assistance instead of only just the child.

12
Child Headed Households

• A child grant is proposed for a child headed
  households.
• The children in a CHH are eligible for the
  CSG,FCG and or the CDG.
• It is the head of household who is often a young
  person that is excluded.

• It is recommended that over and above the child
  grants, young people be assisted temporary with
  Social Relief of Distress to prevent double
  payments.

13
Assistive Devices

• It is a Depart. Of Health service.
• There must be a memorandum of understanding with
  Health on this issue.
• To use grants to cross subsidise health services
  will not be appropriate.

14
Means Test

• Current Status

• Proposed Recommendations.
• All grants must be means tested.

15
Fees and Subsidies

• It is a welfare issue and not a social security
  issue because the service rendered will be a
  welfare one.