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AAP
AAP
Politics
Tim Dornin

SA child protection boss resigns

Peter Malinauskas said a global recruitment process will take place for a new child protection boss. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS) (AAP)

The head of South Australia's embattled child protection department has quit.

Chief executive Cathy Taylor has told the state government she will finish in the role on April 28.

Premier Peter Malinauskas said child protection was a complex and highly challenging area of public policy as he thanked Ms Taylor for her service in the role since 2016.

"The state government will now commence a global recruitment process to fill this position," he said.

"My government has a strong commitment to ensuring the child protection system has the resources it needs to keep our children safe."

Ms Taylor and her department have been under fire in recent months over its handling of cases of abuse and neglect of young children.

Particular concerns were raised after the death of a seven-year-old boy in February last year and a six-year-old girl in July.

Police are conducting criminal investigations into both deaths.

In November two independent reviews found hundreds of children remained at risk of neglect and abuse in homes across the state.

The state government accepted wide-ranging recommendations from those reviews including the need for immediate multi-agency welfare checks on 500 children identified in particularly high-risk settings.

The government also approved an extra $155.6 million in funding for the child protection sector.

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