The Depaartment of Community Services (DOCS) has promised it will revue the case. The girl had been found by emergency services, having starved to death, although police will not confirm she was found in her bed. An Autopsy is being carried out.
"The death of a child is a tragedy and (DOCS) shares the extended family's grief at this sad time," the department said.
"DOCS has taken action to keep the child's siblings safe."
The department would not confirm reports the girl had been under its supervision for most of her life.
"As this matter is currently the subject of an ongoing police investigation, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time," it said.
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Girl, 7, 'starved to death in bed'
News.com.au
THE Department of Community Services (DOCS) will review the case of a seven-year-old girl who reportedly starved to death in her bed in New South Wales.
The girl was found dead in a Hawks Nest house, in the lower Hunter Valley, by emergency services workers on Saturday afternoon.
A post-mortem examination has been carried out on the girl's remains in Newcastle.
Police would not confirm that the girl's malnourished body was found in her bed.
"The circumstances of her death are the subject to an ongoing investigation," a police spokeswoman said.
A 34-year-old woman was taken to Newcastle's Mater Hospital then released.
Homicide police have been called in to investigate, with the help of sex crime and child protection officers.
DOCS said it will would review the case and the coroner and the NSW Ombudsman would also investigate.
"The death of a child is a tragedy and (DOCS) shares the extended family's grief at this sad time," the department said.
"DOCS has taken action to keep the child's siblings safe."
The department would not confirm reports the girl had been under its supervision for most of her life.
"As this matter is currently the subject of an ongoing police investigation, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time," it said.
Police have declined to say if the girl's parents have been interviewed.
Revealed: Girl police say starved to death
By Clementine Cuneo
IT is the question this little girl's parents can't - and authorities refuse - to answer: how could she have starved to death in her bed?
Little Shellay Ward, 7, was found dead by her mother in her family's Hawks Nest home on Saturday morning. Her malnourished body weighed just 9kg.
The Department of Community Services confirmed they had been in contact with the family over the past few years, yet Shellay appeared to have gone unnoticed.
Father Blakeley Ward told The Daily Telegraph he had no idea what caused the death of his little girl, who suffered from autism and developmental disorders.
He said police had told him they believed his daughter died from starvation and dehydration, a claim he said was impossible.
"Starvation, we didn't starve her. She was born small, she was a tiny kid," Mr Ward said.
When police were called to the house after Shellay was found dead, Mr Ward said they told him she weighed just 9kg and had no fluids left in her body.
"I don't know how this can be, she'd eat like anything," he said.
Mr Ward begged for police to investigate what killed his youngest child, saying he and his wife Sharon were loving parents who lived for their three children.
Their two older daughters, a 13-year-old and a 15-year-old, were removed by DOCS on Saturday afternoon.
"I love my kids so much, all three of them, and now one of them is gone. Help me someone, help me find out what happened to my little girl," Mr Ward said.
Mr Ward said his wife tucked Shellay into bed on Friday night and "everything seemed normal".
He said she had eaten dinner and played in the house before going to bed. "I got up on Saturday morning and I said to the kids, 'Where's mummy?'," Mr Ward said.
"They said she was in with Shellay, which was normal. Sharon did everything for her - Sharon got her to walk, Sharon fed her," he said.
Later in the morning when Mr Ward went to see why his wife was still in the bedroom, he discovered the tragedy.
"Sharon was in the bathroom, leaning over crying. I said, 'What's wrong?' I said, 'Tell me, where's Shellay?' " he said.
Mr Ward said his wife told him the little girl was dead in her bed.
His only explanation for her death was that she was out of sorts since the family moved to their new house.
The family moved to the area from Sydney in August this year. Mr Ward said he wanted to get his children away from "drunks and druggies" and give them a better quality of life.
"She seemed depressed, she didn't smile anymore," Mr Ward said.
The family had previously lived in Housing Department accommodation but are now living in a private rental home.
"Look at this place - new furniture, new toys, pool table, new beds - it was all for the kids. How could anyone say we are bad parents?" he said.
Mr Ward told The Daily Telegraph the Department of Community Services had been in regular contact with his family.
Community Services Minister Kevin Green confirmed the Ward family was known to DOCS, but he couldn't answer why the little girl had been left in her parents' care.
Mr Ward said DOCS had visited the family's former home in Sydney around July this year and allegedly reported neglect, yet the children weren't removed.
The Education Department had also been in close contact with the family in recent years, after the couple decided to take their children out of school because of bullying and applied to home school them.
Death after 14 years of warnings
from news.com.au
THE New South Wales Department of Community Services (DOCS) received repeated warnings about the risk to Shellay Ward and her siblings over a 14-year period, the state Ombudsman Bruce Barbour says.
Mr Barbour announced today that his investigations into the death would now also examine a number of other government departments, including education and housing, as well as two area health services.
On Tuesday, he launched an investigation into the death of seven-year-old Shellay, who was found dead in her bed at her home in Hawks Nest, north of Newcastle, on Saturday.
She weighed just 9kg at the time of her death, well under the weight of a typical seven-year-old, and is believed to have starved to death.
"Initial inquiries into the death of seven-year-old Shellay Ward have shown that the Department of Community Services received a substantial number of reports relating to the potential risks to Shellay and her siblings, extending over a 14-year period," Mr Barbour said.
Shellay has two teenage siblings as well as a younger sister, who was taken from the family by DOCS two years ago.
Mr Barbour said his investigation into the death had also revealed a need to look "beyond the actions of DOCS".
"For this reason, this morning the Ombudsman issued notices requiring information from a number of other public authorities about the extent of the supports provided to Shellay and her siblings," he said.
"These authorities include NSW Department of Housing, NSW Department of Education and Training, Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care, and two area health services."
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