AbSec – NSW Child, Family and Community Peak Aboriginal Corporation – welcomes the release of the 2025 Family Matters Report and stands with SNAICC in calling for governments to move beyond crisis responses and invest in keeping Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children safe and together with their families.
The report again highlights the removal of our children is at rates often well in excess of 10 times that which happens for non-Aboriginal children. These findings mirror what we see every day in NSW – a child protection system that responds after harm, rather than preventing it, and a system that continues to leave Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families without the support they need to stay safe, and together.
AbSec CEO John Leha said the report reinforces what Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities have been telling governments for decades.
“Family Matters is a clear message. Our children are still over-represented at every step of the socalled child protection system because governments are not confronting the bias against our people within their systems and because they continue to fund crisis, not prevention. Until we shift investment into Aboriginal-led, community-controlled solutions, nothing will change for our kids.” In NSW, the situation remains critical.
The number of Aboriginal children in out-of-home care continues to rise, and too many families are pushed into crisis before any meaningful support is offered. AbSec has consistently called for funding for Aboriginal community led solutions that is proportionate to our communities’ interactions with child protection systems and a dedicated and independent NSW Children’s Commission to drive system improvement, build public trust in the system and which has the authority to hold government to account where they make mistakes’.
“The evidence is right in front of us. When Aboriginal organisations lead the work, families stay connected, cultural identity is protected and children are safer. NSW must start backing the very organisations that keep our kids strong,” Mr Leha said.
The 2025 Family Matters Report strengthens the case for real investment in early support designed with, and for, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. For NSW, this means long-term funding for ACCOs, culturally grounded targeted early intervention and family preservation programs, Aboriginal-led programs to restore our children that have been removed to their families and a system that shares decision making with Aboriginal communities instead of imposing decisions from above that, again and again, drive up the removal of our children from their families and fail to safely restore them.
Mr Leha said government action in NSW is long overdue.
“Every year we delay, more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are removed from families, Country and culture. That is unacceptable. NSW must act now. We need a system that works with our Mob, not against them.” AbSec commends SNAICC for their leadership and joins the call to urge all governments to commit to a future where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children grow up safe, supported and proud of who they are, connected to family, community and culture.
The Family Matters Report is an annual report that highlights progress towards ensuring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people grow up safe and cared for in family, community and culture.
The report describes data relating to children’s interactions with child protection on systems and provides a projection of how over-representation is likely to increase over the next 10 years if current conditions are maintained.
About AbSec
AbSec is the peak Aboriginal organisation in NSW dedicated to empowering Aboriginal communities by advocating for the rights, safety, and wellbeing of Aboriginal children, young people and families. We build strength and resilience by supporting community-led solutions, shaping policy, and driving reforms that ensure every Aboriginal child and young person grows up strong in culture and identity.
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