Our Solution.

Aboriginal Australians are recognised as the oldest continuous connected culture in the world.  Aboriginal culture includes rich, vibrant kinship structures and networks. 

Culture and being connected to culture is essential for strong, self-determining, resilient and thriving children and families. 

AACAFS is committed to placing the cultural practices, values, approaches and knowledge of Aboriginal families, communities and nations at the front and centre of everything we do. 

Our unique approach is built off the following core principles:

  • AACAFS will work tirelessly to dismantle colonial constructs and systems which disempower and continue to fail Aboriginal children and families and will fight to rebuild them in ways that reflect self-determination, sovereignty, and justice.

    In doing so, AACAFS will promote and celebrate the brilliance of kinship and the richness of our survival. AACAFS will prioritise keeping families connected and building strong Aboriginal identities underpinned by a sense of belonging to culture and community.

  • AACAFS will focus on supporting Aboriginal families to heal and move from surviving to thriving. This will be achieved by adopting a holistic approach designed to ensure the physical, social, emotional, cultural, and spiritual wellbeing needs of children, families and the community are recognised and met.

    A key focus of AACAFS will be to support young people in OOCH/ROOHC to set personal goals and implement practical strategies that empower their growth and participation in society and reduce the drift into the justice, chronic disease, and mental health systems.

  • AACAFS will deliver services that are trauma-informed and underpinned by:

    • trauma awareness

    • an emphasis on safety and trustworthiness

    • opportunities for choice, collaboration, and connection

    • skill-building

    • strengths-based

  • Aboriginal concepts of family, kinship and network relationships differ from Western conceptions and underpin our therapeutic model of care, our practice approaches, and ways of working.

    AACAFS strongly believes that families are the experts in anything that impacts them, and will work collaboratively with parents, caregivers, family, and Elders, supporting families to maintain a sense of dignity and hope. We will work with families regardless of complexity, including families impacted by substance abuse and family violence.

    Dignity, respect, and hope for families with kinship and culture at the centre will underpin our therapeutic model of care, practice approaches, and ways of working.

  • Evidence clearly shows that a relationship-centred approach between families, caregivers and workers is essential to improving outcomes for Aboriginal children, young people and families that have contact with the OOHC system.

    AACAFS will build genuine, transparent, and collaborative relationships to support young people and families ensuring children and young people are supported to flourish and thrive in OOHC and when they leave care. They must be connected and remain connected to culture and community whilst in care.

    AACAFS will maintain a relationship-based approach, including:

    • Relationship to family and kinship networks

    • Relationship to Country community and totem

    • Relationship to services and service providers (medical, education, housing, police, Centrelink, licence, ID, Aboriginality)

  • AACAFS recognises that historical, economic, and social contexts, coupled with structural and interpersonal power imbalances have negatively impacted Aboriginal children, young people, and families over generations.

    AACAFS will tackle these constructs by challenging racism, unconscious bias and unspoken assumptions and building systems and approaches underpinned by culture, self-determination, and sovereignty.

  • AACAFS will work with families no matter how complex and challenging, including families impacted by substance misuse, poverty, and family violence. AACAFS’s therapeutic model and practice approach will be holistic, inclusive, innovative and evidence based.

  • Outcomes for Aboriginal children and young people involved in child protection systems and OOHC will only improve when Aboriginal families, communities and nations have full authority over their lives and decisions impacting their children and young people.

    AACAFS will collaborate with communities, organisations, businesses, governments, and international bodies to research best practice models for culturally responsible integrated and intensive family services and out-of-home care.

Aboriginal children and young people are disproportionately represented in the child protection system.

  • Aboriginal children and young people involved in ROSH reports are 7X more likely to be seen by DCJ caseworkers than non-Aboriginal children and young people.

  • Whilst the number of non-Aboriginal children and young people entering OOHC in NSW has declined the rate for Aboriginal children and young people has remained steady over the last 7 years.

  • Aboriginal children and young people are 12X more likely to be in statutory OOHC than non-Aboriginal children and young people.

  • Neglect brought about by economic and social disadvantage is the primary reported issue for Aboriginal children and young people at risk of significant harm.

  • Aboriginal children and young people are 4X more likely to be involved in ROSH reports than non-Aboriginal children and young people.

  • Aboriginal children and young people in OOHC are predominantly cared for by non-Aboriginal carers.

  • Aboriginal children and young people are disproportionately represented in alternative care arrangements (ACA) - a form of non-home based emergency care. They include circumstances where a child in OOHC is accommodated in a serviced apartment, hotel/motel or other short term arrangement.

How is AACAFS Different?

As an Aboriginal business, AACAFS is committed to:

  • AACAFS provides leadership to a movement of change driving real social impact improving long term outcomes, wealth and social inclusion for Aboriginal people and communities. We call it smart partnering.

    Smart partnering is a model that drives organisations and governments to work together recognising and embedding the authority of Aboriginal decision making.

    Smart partnering is based on a shared vision. This vision is an inclusive model that demands organisations and governments be in sync with expectations of inclusiveness, recognising Aboriginal agency. Smart partnering consciously removes paternalistic funding and policy barriers. It supports the voices of all Aboriginal people involved in policy development and financial inclusion.

    Smart partnering establishes the expectations for non-Aboriginal sector to better evidence their own cultural capability and responsibility.

  • Sector collectivism is a term used to describe the idea that different sectors of society should work together to achieve a common goal. In the case of AACAFS, this goal is the improvement of the lives of Aboriginal children and families. By working together, different sectors can share resources and expertise, and create a unified front to support Aboriginal children and families.

    Sector collectivisim is about moving from "I" and "Me", to "We" and "Us". Aboriginal organisations must lead the sector response to systematic change.

  • Implementing evidence-based therapeutic models of care that are culturally centred, safe and responsive to deliver:

    • integrated and intensive family services and out of home care for at-risk and vulnerable children, young people and families that protect them from abuse and neglect

    • culturally responsible programs, projects and initiatives founded on self-determination.

  • Building a sector based on cooperative balance, where there is a shift in authority to Aboriginal services, including recognition and respect for self-determination and the authority in Aboriginal decision making. This will involve educating and increasing the awareness of individuals, communities, businesses, and governments about the importance of improving the welfare and wellbeing of children, families and family life.

  • Redress inequality using our voice to promote cultural connectedness and safety, and effective therapeutic models of care.

Our Touchstone Documents:

AACAFS work is underpinned by the following:

  • The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child – the international human rights treaty which sets out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children.

  • The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples - a comprehensive statement addressing the human rights of Indigenous peoples, emphasising the rights of Indigenous peoples to live in dignity, to maintain and strengthen their own institutions, cultures and traditions and to pursue their self-determined development, in keeping with their own needs and aspirations

  • Uluru Statement from the Heart - a historic consensus of Indigenous leaders in seeking constitutional change to recognise First Australians through a Voice to Parliament.