General News
6 July, 2025
Young migrant helping families heal
Ibad Khan, a child protection practitioner based in Horsham, thrives on the complexity and unpredictability of his work, which involves supporting families and protecting vulnerable children.
Mr Khan has already made a meaningful impact in his field at the age of 24.
He migrated to Australia at the age of 18 and began his career in child protection on the frontline in South Australia before relocating to Victoria to join the Horsham office.
“I truly love this job, and going above and beyond for all the families I work with,” he said.
“I’d recommend it for anyone who has empathy, resilience, and wants to give back to their community.”
Mr Khan shared one of his best experiences during his work.
He worked with a family for several months who were concerned about the safety of two young domestic violence victims’ children, and he helped them remove them from the biological parents’ care.
“After working with the parents closely, getting them to engage with family violence education and supporting them to put strategies in place, their children were able to safely return to their care,” he said.
“Both the mother and father are working full-time, and the children are going to daycare Monday to Friday and learning new things every day.
“The best part about this story is that we’ve closed the case now, and the parents have thanked child protection for the role we played in helping them to support their children.
“It’s a very good feeling, knowing that you played a part in a family reunifying.”
Mr Khan believes that there’s a lot to learn while working on the frontline.
He said he had no understanding of the law or of different organisations and services working together before entering this industry.
“There’s a lot of complexity, with everything working together to protect children,” he said.
“I’ve also enhanced my communication skills and confidence in approaching people from all walks of life.
“No day is the same as the last, and there’s always new challenges and learnings.
“On top of that, when you work with families and see them achieve positive outcomes, it’s so rewarding.”
Interested people can find more information about child protection jobs on www.vic.gov.au/child-protection-jobs.