New indicators to be rolled out by the Guardian’s Office in the last quarter of 2016 will strengthen and sharpen the focus on Aboriginal[1] culture and community connection in its monitoring of residential care.[spacer height=”20px”]
In her report last week The Life They Deserve, Commissioner Margaret Nyland recognised the over-representation of Aboriginal young people in the child protection system and the significance of maintaining community and culture for them.[spacer height=”20px”]
Aboriginal children flourish best when they can safely enjoy their land, language, community and culture…
… some Aboriginal children need to reside with non-Aboriginal carers. Supporting the cultural needs of these children is not tokenistic, but profoundly important…
There is a need to re-focus cultural support in Families SA (…) to ensure that all practitioners have access to advice and support in specific cases, as well as more strategic guidance and training. [2] [spacer height=”20px”]
The new indicators have been in development since 2015 when a consultation with young people and the Murraylands community and a review of the literature made clear the importance of maintaining cultural connections in the development of a healthy identity in young Aboriginal people in care.[spacer height=”20px”]
Senior Policy Officer Alan Fairley said, ‘The indicators align with the Standards of Alternative Care in South Australia which emphasise the right of Aboriginal children in care to know about their cultural identity and their community and to live in a place where people understand and respect their culture.[spacer height=”20px”]
‘The new Indicators will help us decide whether the care arrangement:
- makes the child or young person central by helping them understand their current situation and how they can contribute to decision making
- promotes contact with appropriate people and activities
- uses appropriate service methodologies and tools
- enables the effective involvement of a range of carers and other service providers, and
- has a culturally supportive physical and social environment.
‘And most of all, Advocates will be listening and talking with young people and reporting on how they see their cultural connection being supported.’[spacer height=”20px”]
For further information about the development of the new Culture and Community Indicators, contact Alan Fairley, GCYP Senior Policy Officer, at alan.fairley@gcyp.sa.gov.au [spacer height=”20px”]
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[1] We will use the term Aboriginal to include people of Torres Strait Islander descent in this article.
[2] From Chapter 16 of the Child Protection Systems Royal Commission, The life they deserve: Child Protection Systems Royal Commission Report, Volume 1: Summary and Report (Government of South Australia, 2016) available at https://www.agd.sa.gov.au/child-protection-systems-royal-commission
This item was also published in the August 2016 Guardian’s Newsletter.[spacer height=”20px”]
[spacer height=”20px”]We’d love to receive your comments – please use the reply space below.[spacer height=”20px”]
