Released 08/03/2018
Following a co-design process with community members and experts, a Steering Committee has been formed to oversee the review into the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children involved with Child and Youth Protection Services.
In June 2017, I announced a review into the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in contact with the child protection system, with the governance and methodology to be co-designed with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander experts and key Indigenous organisations.
The review, now known as Our Booris, Our Way will be overseen by a wholly Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Steering Committee and will be conducted in accordance with the principles of self-determination. Committee members bring a diverse set of capabilities and lived experience in child protection, service delivery and related areas.
The Steering Committee is chaired by Ms Barbara Causon. Ms Causon recently retired from the Australian Public Service and has a strong track record of achievement and performance in challenging positions involving strategic, tactical and operational issues.
The Our Booris, Our Way Steering Committee is:
- Barbara Causon, Chair
- Natalie Brown, Deputy Chair
- Jo Chivers, ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body
- Alana Harris, Winnunga Nimmityjah Health and Community Services
- Caroline Hughes, ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body
- Robyn Martin, Beryl Women Inc
- Leo Nickels, Aboriginal Legal Service
- Peter Williams, Gugan Gulwan Youth Aboriginal Corporation
- Sharon Williams, Carer
The review seeks to understand the reasons for children and young people entering care and to develop strategies to reduce the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people in care, improve their experience and outcomes while in care, and examine ways for children to return home safely.
Twenty-six percent of children in out of home care in the ACT are of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent. This is despite Indigenous children making up only three per cent of the ACT’s entire child population. This is not acceptable.
The ACT Government is committed to reducing the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out of home care and we will continue to implement early intervention and prevention strategies while Our Booris, Our Way is underway.
As one example of this commitment, the ACT Government is currently piloting the restorative practice of Family Group Conferencing in partnership with Aboriginal owned organisation Curijo, empowering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families to find solutions to the challenges they face and keep their children safe at home.
The Our Booris, Our Way Steering Committee will deliver a preliminary report in August 2018. A final report is due in September 2019. The nature of the review is iterative and as themes emerge from the review, recommendations for practice and system improvement will be relayed to the Minister, the Director-General, as Territory Parent, and Child and Youth Protection Services.
The Committee will shortly release the final terms of reference for the review.
Comment attributable to Barbra Causon, Chair of Our Booris, Our Way:
“This review is an important opportunity for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to have a real say in how to improve outcomes for our people involved in the child protection system. It is imperative that we see changes that address the alarming number of our kids involved in the child protection system.”
Comment attributable to Rachel Stephen-Smith, Minister for Disability, Children and Youth:
“I thank the members of the Steering Committee for their commitment to overseeing this critical review. Addressing the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people in out of home care is a challenge faced by all jurisdictions, and we are committed to supporting the Steering Committee in its important work and learning from the experience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, organisations and experts.”
- Statement ends -
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