Proposed Plan of Action for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect in Aboriginal Communities

Context

This research report outlines the suggested strategies of the Proposed Plan of Action for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect in Aboriginal Communities. The strategies comprise Stage Two of the Action Plan and are based on the findings of the Stage One discussion paper (1993) prepared by the Secretariat for the National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care (SNAICC), commissioned and funded by the Department of Health and Family Services under the auspices of the National Child Protection Council, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) and the State and Territory Governments (1994).

Terms of Reference

Using the discussion paper developed in Stage One, Stage Two aimed to:

1. conduct consultations throughout Aboriginal communities, urban, rural and remote, which would
   identify the key issues of concern and make recommendations for the prevention of child abuse and
   neglect in Aboriginal communities.
2. identify, develop and refine child abuse prevention strategies which would be acceptable to Aboriginal
   communities and would maximise the involvement of Aboriginal people in their design and
   implementation.
3. develop an Action Plan for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect in Aboriginal Communities.

The plan should clearly identify:

• the target group at which the strategies are aimed;
• what the strategies aim to achieve;
• how the strategies are to be implemented.

The Research

Aboriginal communities, organisations and individuals in urban, rural and remote areas were consulted over a period of eight months. Individuals in government and non-government non-Aboriginal Organisations were also consulted.

Consultations were conducted in the form of workshops, individual discussions or written comments.

Workshops were conducted (on a one- or two-day basis) in Perth, Broome, Darwin, Alice Springs, Cairns, Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.

Those consulted represented a wide range of Aboriginal communities and organisations and included men, women, young people and elders.

An extensive literature search was also conducted to determine the key issues of concern.