Family Matters Report 2023

Report Card

Family Matters – Strong communities. Strong culture. Stronger children. annual report examines what governments are doing to turn the tide on over-representation and the outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. It highlights Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led solutions and calls on governments to support and invest in the strengths of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to lead on child wellbeing, development and safety responses for our children.

Family Matters’ goal is to see Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people grow up safe and cared for in family, community and culture. Family Matters aims to eliminate the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care within a generation (by 2040). Family Matters is led by SNAICC – National Voice for our Children and a group of eminent Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders from across the country. It is supported by a Strategic Alliance of over 150 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous organisations.

The Family Matters 2023 Report shows that Target 12 in the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, to reduce the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care by 45% by 2031, remains very much off-track. The number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children affected by the child protection system is increasing. In 2022 there were 22,328 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care in Australia, the highest number ever recorded. Most disturbingly, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are 10.5 times more likely than non-Indigenous children to be in out-of-home care – the highest rate of over-representation ever recorded. Through Family Matters we continue to call for accountability to deliver on the commitment in the National Agreement. All governments need to do more to transform child protection systems, consistent with the Family Matters Roadmap and the Priority reforms.

The Family Matters Report 2023 Report Card shows the jurisdictional progress being made on the Building Blocks, which are:

• BUILDING BLOCK 1: Universal and targeted services
• BUILDING BLOCK 2: Participation, control and self-determination
• BUILDING BLOCK 3: Culturally safe and responsive systems
• BUILDING BLOCK 4: Accountability