What is Safe and Supported?

Safe and Supported is Australia’s national framework for reducing child abuse and neglect and its intergenerational impacts. At its core, it is a commitment to keeping children safe by strengthening families, supporting communities and addressing the systems that place children at risk of harm, and aims to ensure all children and young people in Australia can reach their full potential, growing up safe, supported and free from harm and neglect.

Safe and Supported: the National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2021–2031 succeeds the 2009–2020 National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children. It builds a stronger, shared commitment to prevention, early intervention and culturally safe responses. The Safe and Supported framework was developed through partnership between Commonwealth, state and territory governments, SNAICC – National Voice for our Children, the Safe and Supported Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership Group and the National Coalition on Child Safety and Wellbeing. Together, through Safe and Supported and its Action Plans, the partnership aims to drive significant and sustained reductions in child abuse and neglect across Australia.

The framework is built around four national focus areas:

• a national approach to early intervention and targeted supports for children and families,
• addressing the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in child protection systems,
• improving information sharing, data development and analysis, and
• strengthening the child and family sector and workforce capability.

Safe and Supported is for all children, young people and families, with targeted action for those experiencing disadvantage or a higher risk of harm. This includes children and families with multiple and complex needs; children, young people and parents or carers with disability experiencing disadvantage; children and young people who have experienced abuse or neglect, including those in out-of-home care and young people transitioning to adulthood; and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people experiencing vulnerability or disadvantage.

Safe and Supported outlines how governments will work in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders and the non-government sector to improve outcomes, and is the key national strategy supporting progress towards Target 12 of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, which commits all governments to reducing the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care by 45 per cent over ten years.

To learn more about the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care and the importance of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled solutions in achieving improved outcomes, visit Family Matters.

Family Matters

Our role

SNAICC – National Voice for Our Children is a key partner in Safe and Supported.

From the outset, SNAICC has worked alongside governments, the Safe and Supported Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership Group and sector partners to co-design the framework. This included leading national consultations that created safe, culturally appropriate spaces for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to share priorities for children, families and communities.

SNAICC plays a central role in shaping and delivering the framework’s vision, supporting the development of the Safe and Supported Partnership Agreement, which formalises shared decision-making between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders and all Australian governments. Shared decision-making is a core governance approach under Priority Reform 1 of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap. Through shared decision-making arrangements, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership Group, supported by SNAICC, engages with governments in implementing Safe and Supported and its Action Plans. Regular meetings of the Safe and Supported Shared Decision-Making Committee bring Leadership Group members and Community Services Ministers together to guide implementation and progress on key actions.

Find out more about Closing the Gap

SNAICC provides ongoing support to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership Group for Safe and Supported, which is made up of leading Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander experts in child and family services. Together, SNAICC and the Leadership Group ensure national reforms reflect the needs and priorities of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, families and communities. This includes:

• progressing a National Child and Family Investment Strategy to shift funding towards early, targeted and culturally safe supports delivered by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled organisations, in partnership with governments and communities,
• developing a design report for a National Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Safety,
• leading a Legal Supports Scoping Study to strengthen access to culturally safe legal supports for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families,
• partnering with the Department of Social Services on the design and implementation of the Innovation Grant Fund to support prevention and early intervention through Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled organisations,
• developing a national definition and jurisdictional scan of delegated authority,
• progressing national standards for active efforts to implement the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle, and
• supporting the development of Safe and Supported Outcomes Frameworks and Theories of Change to guide implementation and evaluation.

SNAICC continues to advocate for Safe and Supported to be fully implemented in ways that deliver real and lasting change for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, families and communities. The framework is closely connected to SNAICC’s broader Child and Family Wellbeing and Closing the Gap work, which aims for transformational change across systems that affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families, from prevention and early intervention to cultural and community-led support.

Safe and Supported Action Plans

Safe and Supported is being delivered through two complementary Action Plans (2023–2026) that outline the specific activities, strategies and outcomes to be achieved in the first phase of implementation. These Action Plans set out how governments, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders and the non-government sector will work together to bring the 10-year strategy to life.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander First Action Plan 2023–2026

Developed in partnership with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership Group, the Safe and Supported: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander First Action Plan 2023–2026 applies across all aspects of the national framework. It outlines an agenda focused on achieving safety and wellbeing outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, families and communities.

The Plan aims to:

• keep Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children safe and connected to family, community and culture,
• reduce involvement with child protection and out-of-home care systems, including responding to Target 12 of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap,
• embed self-determination and shared decision-making in child and family service systems, and
• strengthen Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled organisations as culturally safe places for children and families to receive support.

The Plan reflects the voices and experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and centres culture as a protective strength for children.

First National Action Plan 2023–2026

The Safe and Supported: First National Action Plan 2023–2026 was released at the same time as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander First Action Plan and focuses on all children and families who are vulnerable or experiencing disadvantage.

This Action Plan:

• outlines concrete strategies and activities to improve outcomes across the four priority groups identified under the national framework, and
• supports collective efforts by governments and sector partners to deliver on shared goals across the first four years of Safe and Supported.

The plans were developed with input from stakeholders, including children, young people, families and community members, and progress is being tracked through joint efforts across jurisdictions.

Implementation, Monitoring and Accountability

A strong focus on monitoring and accountability underpins Safe and Supported with each Action Plan supported by Outcomes Frameworks and accompanying Theories of Change, which set out the desired outcomes for priority groups and explain how activities are expected to lead to improved results over time.

These frameworks guide implementation and help governments and partners track progress, especially for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, families and communities who have been most impacted by past system failures. Evidence, data development, evaluation and regular reporting are critical to ensuring Safe and Supported delivers on its commitments. Additionally, the National Child and Family Investment Strategy, which aims to shift funding toward early, targeted and culturally safe supports, is a key initiative under the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander First Action Plan and is being advanced alongside other activities and national reforms.

Working with Other National Reforms

Safe and Supported aligns with and complements other national strategies to improve safety and wellbeing for children and families, including:

• National Agreement on Closing the Gap,
• National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse 2021–2030,
• National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022–2032, and
• National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Early Childhood Strategy.

These alignments ensure that actions under Safe and Supported contribute to broader reform priorities, reduce duplication and strengthen coordinated efforts across policy and service systems.