Meaning of parent

A parent of a child is:

• the child’s mother, or
• the child's father, or
• someone else—other than the Chief Executive (Child Safety)—having or exercising parental responsibility for the child.

However, a person standing in the place of a parent of a child on a temporary basis is not a parent of the child.

A parent of an Aboriginal child includes a person who under Aboriginal tradition is regarded as a parent of the child.

A parent of a Torres Strait Islander child includes a person who under Island custom is regarded as a parent of the child.