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| Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care | |
|---|---|
| Name | Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care |
| Formation | 1981 |
| Type | Non-profit |
| Headquarters | Canberra, Australian Capital Territory |
| Region served | Australia |
Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care is a national peak body representing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child and family services across Australia. It engages with Indigenous communities, statutory child welfare agencies and intergovernmental forums to advance culturally safe models of care for children and families affected by removal and disadvantage. The organisation is active in national debates involving Indigenous rights, child protection law reform and community-controlled service delivery.
The organisation was established amid debates following the Aboriginal Child Placement Principle and inquiries such as the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, emerging alongside groups like the Aboriginal Legal Service and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission. Early activity intersected with policy instruments including the Aboriginal Affairs Council and initiatives from the Commonwealth of Australia and state administrations in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, Tasmania, Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory. Founding advocacy drew on leaders associated with the National Aboriginal Conference and contemporary Indigenous organisations such as the Lowitja Institute and Reconciliation Australia. The Secretariat contributed to national dialogues that influenced instruments like the National Framework for Protecting Australia's Children and submissions to inquiries by the Australian Human Rights Commission.
The Secretariat’s mission focuses on advancing the safety, wellbeing and cultural identity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, aligning with principles endorsed by bodies such as the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Objectives reference best practice exemplars including models promoted by SNAICC-affiliated community-controlled organisations, and they reflect commitments seen in policy documents produced by the Australian Institute of Family Studies and the Productivity Commission. The organisation articulates goals that support culturally appropriate out-of-home care, family support, community capacity building and systemic reform highlighted in reports from the Australian Law Reform Commission and the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.
Programs have included training for carers and community workers, resources for kinship care aligned with practice guidance from the Child Rights International Network and capacity-building initiatives similar to programs run by Anglicare Australia, Barnardos Australia and Save the Children Australia. Services comprise policy briefings used by agencies such as the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and collaborative projects with universities including University of Melbourne, Australian National University, Monash University and University of Sydney that generate research on child welfare, social policy and Indigenous wellbeing. The Secretariat has produced toolkits and practice papers referenced by state child protection departments and by advocacy groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch in comparative Indigenous child rights contexts.
The organisation operates as a peak body with a board and executive leadership model comparable to governance arrangements at Oxfam Australia and the Australian Red Cross. Its membership base includes community-controlled Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations, drawing governance input similar to structures used by the PeakCare network and Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations such as Aboriginal Medical Service Redfern. It engages with tribunals and legal institutions including the Family Court of Australia (now partly superseded by the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia) and liaises with statutory commissioners like the Human Rights Commissioner.
Advocacy work has targeted legislative reforms at federal and state levels, contributing to debates on child protection law, kinship care and family support referenced in submissions to the Senate of Australia and reports by the Australian Institute of Criminology. The Secretariat’s policy influence aligns with campaigns seen in the work of Family Matters and intersects with Indigenous legal advocacy organisations such as the National Native Title Council and Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service. It has engaged international mechanisms including the United Nations Human Rights Council and has fed into national inquiries such as those conducted by the Joint Select Committee on Constitutional Recognition Relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.
The Secretariat collaborates with philanthropic partners like the Ian Potter Foundation and services funders within the Department of Social Services (Australia), state departments across New South Wales Department of Communities and Justice, Victorian Department of Families, Fairness and Housing, and agencies such as the Australian Institute of Family Studies. Partnerships extend to research centres including the Lowitja Institute and community partners like Aboriginal Hostels Limited and Marninwarntikura Women’s Resource Centre. Funding models combine government grants, philanthropic contributions and fee-for-service work similar to arrangements used by Anglicare Australia and The Smith Family.
Notable campaigns include contributing to national awareness efforts aligned with Close the Gap and family-strengthening initiatives promoted by Family Matters and the SNAICC — National Voice for Our Children network; advocacy milestones influenced policy revisions reflected in state care standards and reporting by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Achievements include advancing acceptance of culturally based kinship care approaches promoted in practice guidelines referenced by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse and informing reforms that intersect with instruments such as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle and national frameworks supported by the Council of Australian Governments.
Category:Indigenous Australian organisations Category:Child welfare organizations in Australia