In Queensland, 91 children known to child protection services died in the 2025–26 financial year — a 60 percent rise from the year before and the highest toll in five years. Behind the statistic lie patterns both specific and systemic: toddlers fed almost exclusively cow's milk, rural children lost to quad bike accidents, and Indigenous children dying at a disproportionate and growing rate. A society's care for its most vulnerable is often measured not in policy documents but in these quieter, harder numbers — and Queensland is now being asked to look at them squarely.
Queensland child deaths known to protection services surge 60% to five-year high
91 children known to child protection services died in Queensland in 2025–26, including cases involving severe nutritional deficiencies and preventable incidents.
Children fed almost exclusively cow's milk, developing severe deficiencies
Mark
So we're talking about 91 children in one year. That's the number that jumps out. But I want to understand what changed. Why did it jump 60 percent?
Mimi
That's the question everyone's asking. The report doesn't explain the cause of the spike itself—it just documents that it happened. It could be better recording, more children entering the system, or actual increased mortality. The commission doesn't say.
Luke
Right. And that matters enormously. A 60 percent jump could mean the system is finally catching and counting deaths it missed before, or it could mean something has genuinely gotten worse. We don't know which.
Mark
What about the patterns they did identify? The nutritional deficiency cases—those sound preventable.
Mimi
Absolutely. Children fed almost exclusively cow's milk, developing severe deficiencies. The ABC had already reported on three toddler deaths from this in the previous two years. So the commission saw it, flagged it, sent it to the Coroner and Health. Both agencies are now investigating.
Luke
But "investigating" and "preventing" are different things. We don't know if anything has actually changed in practice yet. The recommendation about recording school enrollment—that's still "under consideration." That's bureaucratic language for: it hasn't happened.
Mark
What about the Indigenous children? That 16 percent increase seems significant.
Mimi
It is. 102 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children died in 2025–26, up from 88. That's a real increase, and it sits inside a broader pattern of Indigenous overrepresentation in child protection systems.
Luke
But again, we need to be careful. Is that increase driven by the same factors as the overall spike? Or is it something different? The report doesn't break it down that way.
Mark
So what actually happens next?
Mimi
The government accepted 32 of 52 recommendations from the June inquiry. Sixteen more were accepted in principle. Simplified adoption, entrenchment of adoption as an option—those are the headline items.
Luke
In principle means they haven't committed resources or timelines. And we don't know if any of that addresses the immediate, concrete problems—the nutritional deficiency cases, the quad bikes, the Indigenous overrepresentation. Those need different solutions.
The Pulse
- Ninety-one children known to child protection services died in a single year — a 60% surge that has shaken confidence in Queensland's ability to safeguard its most at-risk kids.
- Investigators uncovered a disturbing pattern of toddler deaths linked to severe nutritional deficiencies, with some children fed almost exclusively cow's milk — preventable tragedies now referred to the State Coroner and Queensland Health.
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children bore a disproportionate share of the toll, with their deaths rising 16% to 102 — a figure the commission wants better tracked through improved coronial data collection.
- A June inquiry found serious systemic failures and issued 52 recommendations; the government accepted 32 outright and 16 in principle, but the pace and depth of implementation remain uncertain.
- The Opposition has declared the system in crisis, and the state government faces mounting pressure to show that accepted recommendations will translate into lives saved — not just policy language.
In Queensland, 91 children known to child protection services died in the 2025–26 financial year — a 60 percent rise from the year before and the highest toll in five years. Behind the statistic lie patterns both specific and systemic: toddlers fed almost exclusively cow's milk, rural children lost to quad bike accidents, and Indigenous children dying at a disproportionate and growing rate. A society's care for its most vulnerable is often measured not in policy documents but in these quieter, harder numbers — and Queensland is now being asked to look at them squarely.
Queensland's child protection system recorded 91 deaths of children known to its services in the 2025–26 financial year — a 59.6 percent increase from the 57 deaths recorded the year before, and the highest five-year toll. The figures come from the Queensland Family and Child Commission's annual report, the body responsible for maintaining the state's child death register and identifying patterns that might prevent future tragedies.
Of the 452 children who died in Queensland during that period, 91 had prior contact with child safety services. But the raw numbers obscure something more troubling: specific, preventable patterns. Quad bikes remain a persistent danger in rural and remote communities. More alarming is a cluster of deaths tied to severe nutritional deficiencies — in several cases, toddlers had been fed almost exclusively cow's milk. The ABC had reported in August that this pattern contributed to the deaths of three Queensland toddlers over two years. The commission referred its findings to the State Coroner and Queensland Health, both of which have since begun investigating prevention responses.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are dying at a disproportionate and growing rate — 102 deaths recorded in 2025–26, up from 88 the year before, a 16 percent rise. The commission has recommended that coronial data collection be strengthened, including recording which school a deceased child attended, to better surface systemic issues. That recommendation was still under consideration at the close of the reporting period.
The surge has sharpened scrutiny of the broader system. A Commission of Inquiry into Child Safety released in June identified serious failures and offered 52 recommendations; the government accepted 32 outright and 16 in principle, including a feasibility review of simplified adoption processes. Opposition leader Steven Miles called the system in crisis. What remains unresolved is how swiftly those accepted recommendations will take effect — and whether the patterns now named will begin, at last, to reverse.
In the 2025–26 financial year, 91 children known to Queensland's child protection system died. That number represents a 59.6 percent jump from the previous year, when 57 such deaths were recorded. It is the highest toll in five years, according to the Queensland Family and Child Commission's annual report, released Friday. The commission maintains the state's register of child deaths and is tasked with identifying patterns that might prevent future tragedies.
Of the 452 children who died in Queensland during that period, 91 had prior contact with child safety services. The remaining deaths came from natural causes—312 children—or external causes like transport accidents and unintentional injuries, which accounted for 94 deaths. But the raw numbers tell only part of the story. The commission's analysis uncovered specific, preventable patterns that demand attention.
Quad bikes continue to pose a significant risk to children in rural and remote communities. More alarming, however, is what the child death prevention team discovered about nutrition: a concerning pattern of deaths linked to severe nutritional deficiencies caused by highly restricted diets. In several cases, children had been fed almost exclusively cow's milk. The ABC reported in August that excessive cow's milk consumption had contributed to the deaths of three Queensland toddlers over the previous two years. The commission referred these findings to the State Coroner and Queensland Health, recommending further investigation and system-level responses. Both agencies have since begun work to understand the issue more fully and identify prevention opportunities.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children represent a disproportionate share of these deaths. The register recorded 102 such deaths in 2025–26, up from 88 the year before—a 16 percent increase. The commission has recommended that coronial data collection be improved, specifically suggesting that recording which school a deceased child attended would help identify systemic issues and strengthen prevention efforts. That recommendation remained under consideration by the State Coroner at the end of the reporting period.
The surge in child deaths has intensified scrutiny of Queensland's child protection system. In June, a Commission of Inquiry into Child Safety released a report identifying what it called serious failures and offering 52 recommendations to the government. The state accepted 32 of those recommendations outright and accepted a further 16 in principle. Among the key accepted recommendations are a feasibility assessment for simplified adoption processes and entrenchment of adoption as an option regardless of cultural background.
Opposition leader Steven Miles characterized the system as being in crisis. "There are now more children in residential care and more children known to child safety who have tragically died on the Child Safety Minister Amanda Camm's watch," he said. The state government has been asked for comment on the figures. What remains unclear is how quickly the accepted recommendations will be implemented and whether the patterns identified by the commission—the nutritional deficiencies, the quad bike incidents, the disproportionate toll on Indigenous children—will begin to reverse.
Notable Quotes
There are now more children in residential care and more children known to child safety who have tragically died on the Child Safety Minister Amanda Camm's watch.— Steven Miles, Labor opposition leader
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