NEGLECT

• Jurisdiction: Australia

[41C.1000] Overview

Worldwide, neglect is the most common form of child maltreatment. "Neglect" in the child abuse context has no universally accepted definition. A useful working one, however, is "any serious omissions or commissions by a person having the care of a child which, within the bounds of cultural traditions, constitute a failure to provide conditions which are essential for a healthy physical and psychological development of a child": Angus and Wilkinson (1993, p 36). Any neglect may involve failure to ensure adequate food, clothing, shelter, protection, medical care and schooling. All attempts to define neglect suffer from just what is meant by words such as "failure" and "adequate".

A classification of the types of neglect suggested by Barron and Jenny (2011) includes:

1. physical neglect (inadequate

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