Reports
The Commissioner produces reports based on projects linked to key focus areas of her work as set out in her Strategic Framework (2022+). The reports below all relate to children’s wellbeing. They reflect what South Australian children and young people have told the Commissioner matters most to them about their wellbeing, including what changes they would like to see made. The Commissioner also produces a series of annual statutory publications which report on how South Australia is performing against international standards set out in the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights (UNCRC) of the Child, many of which relate to wellbeing.
Teenagers and Gambling
The pervasiveness and risks associated with gambling and the ease with which people of all ages can access and participate in gambling throughout Australian society is gaining greater awareness. However, little attention is being given to the views and experiences...
Postcards snapshot for South Australia’s Royal Commission into Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence
The Commissioner has designed a postcard for South Australia’s Royal Commission into Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence to engage with children and young people who may not otherwise be heard. The postcard asked children and young people about when they feel...
A 6-Point Plan to Make SA a Better Place for Kids
Whilst the full Things That Matter 5 report is a delightful read for those who want to drill down into responses to the questions children have supplied, this snapshot summary of what kids have told the Commissioner will make South Australia better from their point...
Friendship and Belonging
Friendship and connection are extremely important to children’s health and wellbeing – a factor increasingly recognised by governments around the world, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19 lockdowns, and recognised in Article 15 of the UN Convention on...
The Things That Matter 5
This fifth report from the Commissioner's Student Voice Postcards initiative reflects responses from 18,328 South Australian children who completed postcards in 2023 - up from 16,007 in 2022. Children told their Commissioner they want more time with the parents,...
Everyday Racism
Everyday Racism outlines the experiences of racism South Australian refugee and migrant young people have explicitly raised with with the Commissioner in conversations and direct engagement with them. It also highlights young people’s ideas for preventing and...
Early Years Postcards
Being able to speak up and express their opinions is a core right of children, as stated in Article 12 in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. In 2023, the Commissioner extended her postcards initiative to be inclusive of preschool aged children so that...
Teenagers and Work
Young people’s experiences of work impact their lives in many ways – not only in terms of their present and future workforce participation, but also in relation to their health, safety, wellbeing and education outcomes. For teenagers, having a paid job during high...
Safe and Sound: views and experiences of SA young people on public transport
This report from 2023 have been gathered directly from young people across the state. It includes both positive and negative experiences of public transport, along with suggestions about what needs improving. Although many of the issues are shared by adults, young...
High Stakes High School: The experiences of South Australian Year 12 students
This report from 2022 recognises the range of attributes young people needto thrive in a changing world, including those gained from experiences outside the classroom. Beyond job prospects and security, educational attainment also influences behaviours and...
More Than a Game: What do children and young people think about sport?
This report from 2022 focuses on children and young people’s perceptions and experiences of organised sport in South Australia. Based on over 1,500 responses to an online survey in 2021, it complements my wider engagement with South Australian children and young...
From Checkbox to Commitment
This report from 2022 seeks to fill some of the knowledge gaps around identity, inclusion and independence in the lives of children and young people living with disability. It has been written against the backdrop of the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse,...
Stereotypes and Sexism in Schools
The purpose of this report from 2022 is to bring children and young people’s perspectives and experiences of sexism and gender stereotypes to the fore. Through face-to-face conversations and by exploring how children and young people perceive the differences...
My Digital Life
The shift to a predominantly online existence in 2020, as a result of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, highlighted the issue of digital inequality across our communities, it also exposed the multiple impact a lack of digital access has on children and young...
Press Play – Activating Young People’s Health and Wellbeing Through Play
Play for young people is so much more than just a way to occupy their time. It is one of the few ways in which they know they can experience the world beyond and independent of the direction and moderation of adults. The material contained in this report has been...
Off To Work We Go
Much of our society and schooling system focuses on preparing children and young people for their futures. From a young age, children are asked ‘what do you want to be when you grow up?’ As they get older this question changes to ‘what are you going to do when you...
Community Building in the 21st Century: How to use collaborative gaming to build connection, confidence and creativity
In the Commissioner's extensive conversations with young people, we have heard that gaming and esports is an area in which they would like to see more resources provided at the local community level. Young people often speak to me about the value gaming offers them...
2030 SDG Action Plan by South Australian Young People
Children and young people have told the Commissioner that community is crucial to strong healthy societies and that ‘if you help people contribute positively – no one loses and everyone wins’. They believe the majority of young South Australians care deeply about...
Leave No One Behind: What children and young people have said about living in poverty
This report aims to provide deep insight into how children and young people understand poverty. It captures responses made by children and young people to questions they were asked about what they think poverty means, what it’s like (for some of them) to live in...
Public Transport: It’s Not Fine
In 2019, the Commissioner for Children and Young People talked to South Australian children and young people about their experiences on public transport. This report explores the systemic issues identified by South Australian children and young people in relation...
Youthful Adelaide
Between August and November 2018, South Australia’s Commissioner for Childrenand Young People, Helen Connolly met with 130 young people between the ages of12 and 22 to ask them what they thought would make the City of Adelaide a moreyouthful place. To explore this...
Children and the Family Law System | What children think should happen when families separate
The Australian Law Reform Commission’s ‘ALRC’ Review of the Family Law System provided the SA Commissioner for Children and Young People ‘Commissioner’ an opportunity to carry out focused consultations with children and young people about the Family Law system. The...
Australian Children’s Commissioners and Guardians | Joint Participation Paper
Members of the ACCG regularly consult with a diverse array of children and young people within their jurisdictions on a wide range of topics This report from 2018 reflects some of the consistent themes from a sampling of these consultations. The consultations...
Listening Tour: Reflections | Hearing the Voices of South Australia’s Children and Young People
The Listening Tour was launched on 15 June 2017. Its aim was to provide the Commissioner the opportunity to meet with as many children and young people across the state as possible. The purpose was to find out what matters to them and how they think their lives can...
