Cost of Child Abuse in Australia

The financial cost of child abuse is ten times the financial cost of obesity in Australia.

Child abuse and neglect costs Australians ten times more than obesity, a landmark report has found. The report has also found that the number of cases of abuse in our community may be five times higher than the official figures.

The Cost of Child Abuse in Australia, a joint research report by Access Economics, Australian Childhood Foundation and Child Abuse Prevention Research Australia at Monash University, is the first comprehensive report of its kind in Australia. It found that the real cost of child abuse to the Australian community in 2007 was $10.7 billion, and could be as high as $30.1 billion, including the monetary value of the pain and suffering that they experience.

The figures account for the costs associated with protecting and caring for child victims of abuse, including doctors, nurses, police, social workers, judges, probation officers, teachers and foster carers. It also includes responding to crime associated with child abuse and neglect, additional government expenditure on educational assistance for victims, poorer long-term labour market outcomes and an estimate of the total cost of the pain and suffering experienced by child victims of abuse.

“The cost of child abuse to the Australian community is staggering,” said Dr Joe Tucci, CEO of Australian Childhood Foundation.

“The reality is that we can, and should, be doing more to protect our children. If we can prevent child abuse before it starts, we will be protecting vulnerable children and also reducing the financial burden on the Australian community,” said Dr Tucci.

“This is the first comprehensive, national study of the costs of child abuse and neglect in Australia. It clearly demonstrates the importance of accountability and transparency. To spend so much and know so little defies belief. There also needs to be greater investment in research and evaluation,” said Professor Chris Goddard, Director of Child Abuse Prevention Research Australia at Monash University.

“Official estimates from Government child protection authorities are unreliable because there is no uniform national data collection system,” said Professor Goddard.

While there were 36,000 substantiated reports of child abuse and neglect in Australia in 2007, the report estimates that there  are approximately 177,000 children abused or neglected and this figure could be even higher.

“This shows that child abuse is still very much an invisible problem and it is likely that thousands of children are left unprotected from abuse and neglect each year,” said Dr Tucci.

The report also calculated that the cost to the community of the consequences of abuse over the lifetime of children who were abused for the first time in 2007 is approximately $13.7 billion and could be as high as $38.7 billion, including the monetary value of the pain and suffering that they experience.

“The scars of child abuse can stay with victims for their whole lives. If we trace those children who were abused for the first time in 2007 for the rest of their lives, we would see the full extent of its effects,” said Dr Tucci.

“It will have an impact on their physical and mental health, increase their need for educational assistance and put them at higher risk of drug and alcohol problems and crime. It will also lead to emotional trauma. Not only do the children suffer, but the community also pays a high price for these consequences,” said Dr Tucci.

“To put this into perspective, the projected $38.7 billion cost to our community is only for those children abused in 2007 for the first time. When you consider that this sort of figure can be applied for a new group of children experiencing abuse and neglect for the first time in 2008 and so on every year, the financial and social costs to all of us are astronomical,” said Dr Tucci.

“The results of this report highlight the urgent need for a national uniform approach to one of Australia’s most serious – and financially crippling – problems,” said Professor Goddard.

The report coincides with a new national campaign, Stop Child Abuse Now, launched this week by the Australian Childhood Foundation.

“The new campaign features a powerful new television commercial designed to compel Australians into taking action against child abuse. Doing nothing is not an option,” said Dr Tucci.

The campaign directs people to www.stopchildabusenow.com.au where they can learn more about how they can prevent child abuse and better protect children.

The launch of the new report comes a day before World Day for the Prevention of Child Abuse, Wednesday 19 November.

This is a Media Release from the Australian Childhood Foundation.