Governments inaction on Closing the Gap impacting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children – SNAICC in the News

The week of 3 March 2025 covers new AIHW data showing governments inaction on Closing the Gap is impacting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, as well as advocates urging action be taken on non-financial barriers to ensure universal access to early childhood education and calls continue for community-led solutions rather than a Royal Commission into Aboriginal children.

New data released this week by the Australian Institute of Health and Wellbeing (AIHW) reveal governments inaction on Closing the Gap is affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, with only one-third on track developmentally. Despite significant investment in remote communities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children remain over-represented in the juvenile justice and child protection systems. SNAICC CEO Catherine Liddle called on governments to honour their National Agreement on Closing the Gap commitments, saying that these disparities are not due to failings in the National Agreement or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations but the result of a lack of meaningful government action. Catherine said that there have been positive results in early childhood education led by Aboriginal organisations, but that there is a need for more progress on school readiness and addressing systemic injustices.

This week, a group of early learning advocates, service providers and social service organisations urged the Federal Government to address the non-financial barriers that continue to prevent one out of every ten children from receiving early childhood education or care. While recent reforms, such as guaranteeing three days of subsidised early learning and abolishing the Activity Test, have improved affordability, these changes alone are not enough to ensure universal access to quality early learning. Gretchen Young of SNAICC spoke about the importance of culturally safe early education for Aboriginal children to support their school readiness and long-term well-being. Advocates urge governments to address non-financial barriers such as cultural and language differences, disabilities, transportation access and system navigation.

Child commissioners from the Australian and New Zealand Children’s Commissioners, Guardians and Advocates (ANZCCGA) have this week joined the calls rejecting a royal commission into sexual abuse in Aboriginal communities, instead advocating for community-driven responses and early intervention. In a joint statement released in January, SNAICC and other organisations strongly opposed the Royal Commission, arguing that the focus should be on promoting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led solutions rather than politicising children’s safety. The joint statement from SNAICC which has gained over 150 other signatories highlights the importance of investing in community-controlled organisations and better implementing Closing the Gap priorities in order to effectively protect children. ANZCCGA has argued that top-down, punitive approaches are ineffective, as they often overlook the most vulnerable. The organisation said the lack of action on previous inquiry recommendations demonstrated a failure to hold governments accountable for the human rights of children in Australia.

For complete coverage, find the news stories linked below.

Topic: Governments inaction on Closing the Gap impacting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children

New data released this week by the Australian Institute of Health and Wellbeing reveals that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are suffering as a result of the governments inaction on Closing the Gap targets.

The Australian Institute of Health and Wellbeing (AIHW) data shows that only one-third of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are developmentally on track, with no progress in reducing their over-representation in juvenile justice and child protection systems across Australia.

SNAICC CEO Catherine Liddle said that governments must uphold their commitments under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap. She said that this report is part of a series showing that governments have largely failed to meet their obligations, with little fundamental change and a continued ‘business-as-usual’ approach. Catherine said that the worsening targets around children’s readiness for school and the alarming disparities in justice and child protection systems are not failures of the National Agreement or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled organisations, rather, they are the result of a lack of government action, which is delaying the crucial changes needed to improve Closing the Gap outcomes. Catherine pointed to examples of positive change in early childhood education settings that are being led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations. While it is encouraging to see that Target 3 on preschool enrolment is on track, she said that the fact children are still not developmentally ready for school shows that more work is required.

Pat Turner, CEO of the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO), said this week that poor progress in one area leads to negative outcomes in others. She expressed concern over the regression of key targets, stressing the need for a coordinated and meaningful response and argued that we cannot allow children and young people to continue being failed by systems that refuse to change. Studies show that early childhood education and care interventions play a key role in reducing juvenile offending and addressing the crossover between children entering out-of-home care and involvement in the juvenile justice system.

Despite the government’s commitment to closing the gap and significant investment in remote communities, criticism has been directed at the inability to prevent states and territories from enacting policies that experts say harm Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. Although Closing the Gap targets have been signed by all jurisdictions, Ms Turner pointed out that many of these targets are being flagrantly violated. She cited proposals to bypass the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle, lowering the age of criminal responsibility and tightening bail laws. Ms Turner said that state and territory governments must start pulling their weight, echoing comments by Wirdi man and leading barrister Tony McAvoy SC, who told a Senate inquiry last month that jurisdictions appear to be abandoning Australia’s international human rights obligations. Without government action, he warned, this situation will persist.

Ms Turner said that progress on Closing the Gap targets required Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled organisations and the evidence is clear—community-led solutions work. She pointed to the NACCHO model of care, which has been proven to deliver better health outcomes, higher treatment adherence rates, and greater cost-effectiveness than mainstream services. Yet, despite this, community-controlled organisations continue to face underfunding.

Catherine Liddle concluded by reiterating that to close the gap, governments must honour their commitments and empower Aboriginal-led solutions to drive policy reform and service delivery. She said that without urgent action, the cycle of disadvantage will persist.

For complete coverage, find our Media Release and news stories linked below.

Topic: Advocates urge action on non-financial barriers to ensure universal access to early childhood education

This week, a group of early learning advocates, service providers and social service organisations urged the Federal Government to address the non-financial barriers that continue to prevent one in ten children from accessing early childhood education and care.

While recent reforms, such as guaranteeing three days of subsidised early learning and abolishing the Activity Test, have improved affordability, these changes alone are not enough to ensure universal access to quality early learning. Advocates say that families experiencing disadvantage, culturally and linguistically diverse communities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and children living with disabilities, continue to face non-financial challenges. These include difficulties with transport, complex enrolment systems, cultural barriers, food insecurity and housing instability. These barriers disproportionately affect the children who would benefit most from early learning, yet they remain excluded due to practical obstacles.

Gretchen Young, Executive Director of Programs at SNAICC, said that Closing the Gap must begin with early childhood education. She said there is a need for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children to have better access to culturally safe, high-quality early childhood education and care to support their school readiness and long-term wellbeing and that this is crucial for preparing them for school and ensuring their success during the critical early years.

Georgie Dent, CEO of The Parenthood, echoed this, saying that achieving true universality requires the removal of practical barriers. She said that no child should be denied the life-changing opportunity to participate in high-quality early childhood education and care. Ms Dent argued that to achieve true universality, we must address obstacles like transport issues, cultural barriers and complex systems. She said that ensuring equity in participation in high-quality early childhood education and care is the most powerful tool to combat disadvantage and inequity.

Recent data from Uniting NSW.ACT sheds light on the scale of the issue, identifying Federal electorates where significant numbers of children miss out on early learning due to non-financial barriers. While the organisation has welcomed the recent passing of Federal Government legislation guaranteeing three days of subsidised early learning and abolishing the Activity Test, Tamara Pararajasingham, Director of Impact and Innovation at Uniting NSW.ACT, said that addressing affordability alone will not achieve universal access. Pararajasingham said that non-financial barriers, such as cultural and language differences, disabilities, transport access and system navigation, still prevent many children from accessing early learning. She said the importance of models, like the Links to Early Learning program, which helps families overcome these barriers, ensure that no child is left behind and that all children, especially the most marginalised, have access to quality early learning.

For complete coverage, find the news stories linked below.

Topic: Calls continue for community-led solutions rather than Royal Commission into Aboriginal children

Child commissioners from the Australian and New Zealand Children’s Commissioners, Guardians and Advocates have rejected the call for a royal commission into sexual abuse in Aboriginal communities, instead, they are advocating for community-driven responses and early intervention.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has proposed establishing a royal commission into sexual abuse in Aboriginal communities within the first 100 days, if elected. This proposal has been met with widespread criticism with organisations arguing that focusing on Aboriginal communities is not about child safety, but about advancing political agendas.

SNAICC, along with a growing number of organisations and individuals, has strongly opposed calls for a Royal Commission, stating that children’s safety should not be politicised or used to push a political position. In a joint statement released in January, SNAICC said the calls for a Royal Commission lacked credible evidence and played into harmful, negative stereotypes of Aboriginal people and communities. The joint statement, which has gathered over 150 signatories, urged the government to focus on the most effective actions to protect children and uphold their human rights. It called for investment in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled organisations that work to support children and families, a commitment to the National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and a focus on Closing the Gap priorities and reforms.

The Australian and New Zealand Children’s Commissioners, Guardians and Advocates (ANZCCGA) have also endorsed community-led solutions. This week, they released a statement calling for early intervention, better support services and community-driven responses to protect all children. The organisation said that while there is a time and place for Royal Commissions, this is not one of them. Prioritising community-led solutions is not a new concept and does not require a Royal Commission to action, they said.

ANZCCGA have also argued that top-down, punitive approaches were ineffective, as they often overlooked the voices of the most vulnerable. The organisation said the lack of action on previous inquiry recommendations demonstrated a failure to hold governments accountable for the human rights of children in Australia. If governments are serious about protecting children, they must implement measures to ensure they act on the evidence, they said. In January, SNAICC chief executive Catherine Liddle said if Mr Dutton was truly concerned about the safety of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, he would support strengthening community-controlled organisations. The annual Family Matters report outlines evidence-based strategies developed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations to ensure children grow up safe and loved.

For complete coverage, find the news stories linked below.