Care records

What are care records? 

Care records are documents and information held by government agencies about your time in care or your interactions with services. 

They may include information about: 

• where and when you were in care 

• services that were provided 

• decisions made about your care 

• correspondence, reports or assessments 

• other records relevant to your time in care

The type and amount of information available will vary depending on your circumstances and the records held by each agency. 

Requesting care records

You can request care records at any time.  

You do not need to make a State redress claim to request records relating to your time in care. 

If you have an eligible State redress claim, the State redress service can help you access care records as part of the redress process. 

If you do not have an eligible claim, have not made a claim, or do not wish to make a claim, the State redress service can help connect you with the appropriate agency and explain the available options. 

The State redress service does not hold or have access to historic care records. Care records remain with the agency or agencies responsible for those records. 

Any care records that can be provided to you will come directly from the agency that holds them. 

Agencies may need to review care records when assessing your claim and understanding your experiences. 

If care records are needed as part of the assessment process, agencies can access and use those records to help understand your circumstances and respond to your claim. 

Any records used in this way will be managed in line with privacy and information-sharing requirements. 

How the State redress service can help

The State redress service can: 

• explain the options available to you 

• help identify which agency may hold records 

• provide information about requesting records 

• explain how care records may fit into the redress process 

• help facilitate requests for care records as part of an eligible State redress claim 

• connect you with the appropriate agency if you wish to request care records outside the State redress process 

If your experiences involve more than one agency or care setting, the State redress service can also help you understand which agencies may need to be contacted. 

Records and privacy 

You may not receive all existing records 

The records that can be provided will depend on: 

• what information still exists 

• what information can be located 

• privacy and legal requirements 

• the agency that holds the records 

Some information may need to be withheld or edited in line with legal requirements, for example where it contains information about another person. 

The agency responding to your request will explain if any information cannot be provided and why.

Why records might be missing

Records from many years ago are not always complete.

In some cases, records may no longer exist, may be incomplete, or may not contain all the information a person expects to find.

The agency responding to your request will explain what records were located and any limitations that apply.

How your information is protected

Care records often contain personal and sensitive information.

Information contained in care records is managed in line with privacy laws and records management requirements.

For more information about how information is collected, used, shared and protected within the State redress system, see the Privacy and Information Sharing page.

Request your care records

The State redress service can help you access your care records.

A member of the team can:

• explain the options available to you

• answer questions about the process

• connect you with the right records-holding agency, where appropriate