Contemporary placement of Aboriginal children with non-Aboriginal families 1969-present
Placement of Aboriginal children in out of home care with non-Aboriginal families has played a major role in breaking cultural links, including to languages.
The Aborigines Act 1969 (NSW) () brought Aboriginal children who were forcibly removed from their parents into the same child protection system as non-Aboriginal children.
Between 1969-1987, some Aboriginal children who were removed from their families were placed in foster care. Others were placed in boys or girls’ homes (see SUB0116).
The law at the time did not provide any recognition of Aboriginal culture or preference for placing Aboriginal children with Aboriginal families (). In 1980, 81% of Aboriginal children were not in their home regions and 34% had no contact with their parents or relatives ().
The Children (Care and Protection) Act 1987 (NSW) () required Aboriginal children to be placed with family and kinship networks as a first preference. If this was not possible, they were to be placed with non-related carers in the child’s Aboriginal community (Aboriginal non-relatives). However, in 1987 only 51% of foster families with Aboriginal children were Aboriginal ().
To address this, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle (ATSICPP) was introduced. The ATSICPP aims to keep Aboriginal children in their own families or communities and remain connected to their culture (including their language).
The Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 (NSW) () requires the Department to first consider placing Aboriginal children in out-of-home care within their extended family or Aboriginal community. Similarly, the Adoption Act 2000 (NSW) () includes an ATSICPP but allows for the adoption of an Aboriginal child by an unrelated, non-Aboriginal person with approval of the Children’s Court.
In practice, the ATSCIPP has struggled to keep Aboriginal children in contact with their culture and language. For example, in 2008 the Report of the Special Commission of Inquiry into Child Protection () specifically recommended that improvements be made to the out-of-home care system for Aboriginal children, emphasising the importance of culture in child development.
A NSW report found that between 2010-2011, 31% of Aboriginal children were not maintaining their cultural language, 21% were not receiving any discussion about their cultural background, and 34% were not socialising with their birth family’s community ().
The law and policy in this subject is accurate as of 1 June 2023.