Child Abuse Prevention Issuesno.19 Spring 2003Child abuse and neglect in Indigenous Australian communitiesJanet Stanley, Adam M. Tomison and Julian Pocock

Enhancing Out-of-Home Care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Young PeopleDaryl Higgins, Leah Bromfieldand Nick RichardsonAustralian Institute of Family Studies, 2005. ISBN 0 642 395357

Rate of substantiation was on average 4.3 times higher (for all types of abuse) in the Indigenous population than in the non-Indigenous population

Indigenous children are six times more likely to be removed from their families than other Australian children (Edwards and Madden 2001),

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children comprise 2.7 per cent of children in Australia, yet constitute 20 per cent of those placed in out-of-home care (Cunneen and Libesman 2000).

Western Australia in 2000, the rate of reports to police of sexual assault of Indigenous girls was approximately double that of non-Indigenous girls (Ferrante and Fernandez 2002, In one community in Queensland more Aboriginal women have died as a result of violent assault than all black deaths in custody in that State (Sam 1992).

Aboriginal women are 45 times more likely to be a victim of domestic violence than non-Aboriginal

One-third of the Northern Territory's Indigenous female population is assaulted each year.

'National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from their Families'

'The early loss of a mother or prolonged separation from her before the age of 11 is conducive to: depression

an inappropriate partner

difficulties in parenting the next generation

Antisocial activity violence, depression and suicide

The removal of children leads to the increased levels of violence, child abuse and neglect,

30 % Indigenous children leave school before 15 years, compared to 15 per cent for all Australian children (Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2000).

The unemployment rate is higher for Indigenous people, being 17.6 per cent compared with 7.3 per cent for all Australians, as at February 2000 (ABS 2000).

One third of community houses in discrete Indigenous communities (over 14,500 dwellings) need major repairs or demolition

Consistent themes expressed by the young people:

•be back in their home community •reunited with their parents

“If there was one thing in their lives that they could change

Get out of foster care

To be with your family

Go back to my mother

We would be really really want to be with our parents

Have family together – Dad and Mum

Uniting Care Burnside’s Community Placement Program

high intensity out-of-home care

young people aged 11-17

long term and crisis/short term care

care of the Department of Community Services

unable to live with their families

In the 'Report of the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from their Families', no submission from an Indigenous organisation perceived current statutory interventions by child welfare departments to be an effective response to their communities' child protection needs (reported by Cunneen and Libesman 2002).

Yaitya Tirramangkotti Unit

South Australian Department of Human Services Staffed by Aboriginal people

to involve Aboriginal families

NSW Department of Community Services

Indigenous field officers and policy advisers

the Aboriginal Child Placement Principle

Indigenous children in care in Queensland over a 15 year period, Ah Kee and Tilbury (1999)

little real improvement in outcomes for Indigenous children in care.

THE WAY FORWARD

•control and responsibility for Indigenous child welfare need to be passed to the Indigenous community,.

•researchers doubt whether the child protection system is capable of real change, without this process.

Holistic approach by the government •reduce the number of Indigenous children removed from their families; •ensure that cultural factors are considered in all decision-making stages;

•children who have been removed from their family to have the maximum possible contact with the community;

•communities to have involvement in all post-removal decisions.

John:John

•Petrol Sniffing

•Violence and substance abuse

•Attack on his carer

•Custodial sentence

•Placed with family

John:Glenda

•Mental health issues

•Suicide, self harm

•Chose her carer

•Ran from carer

•Self placed in community

•Refused contact with Burnside

•Used On Call