Redress scheme faces backlog crisis

The National Redress Scheme for survivors of institutional child sexual abuse faces a backlog that may prevent it from meeting its scheduled closure dates, according to officials from the Department of Social Services.

During a Joint Standing Committee on Implementation of the National Redress Scheme meeting on September 11, Acting Deputy Secretary Grant Lovelock reported that the department is processing more than 900 applications per month. This is an increase from 471 applications per month in 2024-25 and 769 in 2025-26, but a backlog of 39,000 applications remains.

The scheme is scheduled to stop accepting most new applications on 30 June 2027 and to close by 30 June 2028. The Royal Commission estimated in 2015 that 60,000 people would participate, but 74,174 applications had been received by February.

Committee members questioned whether the Department of Social Services could process existing claims and a surge in applications before the deadline. Tasmanian Senator Richard Dowling stated that meeting the timeline seemed mathematically impossible.