The over‐representation of indigenous children in the Australian child welfare system

Abstract

Similar to other wealthy countries with colonised indigenous populations, Australia's indigenous children, those of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent, are seriously over‐represented in the child welfare system. The specific dimensions of this problem warrant detailed examination. It is useful to consider factors such as rates of entry to care, length of stay and the nature of services provided in order to understand the problem more fully. This article uses child protection, out‐of‐home care and juvenile justice administrative data to examine the levels of disproportionality at key decision points in the child welfare system. The data show that child welfare interventions are persistently more intrusive for indigenous children, and that levels of disproportionality have not improved over time. More comprehensive child and family welfare policies are needed to address indigenous disadvantage. Despite calls by indigenous community agencies for more input to decision‐making, their participation in the Australian child welfare system remains marginal.

Disrupting the Continuities Among Residential Schools, the Sixties Scoop, and Child Welfare: An Analysis of Colonial and Neocolonial Discourses

“…Indigenous families continue to be treated differentially than other, non-Indigenous children by child welfare services in Canada, and other White-settler states, namely New Zealand, Australia, and the United States (Tilbury & Thoburn, 2011). In Australia, 5% of children aged 0 to 17 are Indigenous, while 24% of the children in care are Indigenous; Indigenous children are both more likely to be involved in maltreatment investigations and placed in out-of-home care in comparison with non-Indigenous children (Tilbury, 2009). Similarly, Sinha, Trocmé, Fallon, and MacLaurin's (2013) analysis of the 2008 Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (CIS) revealed that, consistent with 2003 and 1998 findings, First Nations families were investigated on average 4.2 times more often by child welfare than non-Indigenous families (140.6 per 1000 compared to 33.5 per 1000).…”

'Stories from beyond'

“…Experiences of adversity, exclusion and risk are often concentrated among the same young people (Mendes et al 2014;Scutella et al 2013). Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people, for example, are more likely to experience poverty, have higher rates of suicide and be in the juvenile justice system (AIHW 2010-11;Tilbury 2009), and to experience significant educational disadvantage (Mitrou et al 2014;Sikora and Biddle 2015;Song et al 2014).…”

Because I'm Black: What makes for well-functioning Aboriginal families in Brisbane

“…More Aboriginal Australian families are known to police and child protection authorities than is reported for any other dominant or minority group (Tilbury, 2009). This has been apparent from the time of European arrival, and Stanner (1962) captured it clearly some 50 years ago when discussing the lack of appreciation for Aboriginal culture, saying of most Australians that they were:…”

“…The literature on Australian Aboriginal parenting is primarily focused on remedying negatives and deficits that are based on the idea that Aboriginal communities are struggling to raise their children (AIHW, 2014;AIFS, 2015;Little children are Sacred, 2007;Scott & Nair, 2013;Tilbury, 2009;Towns, Varnes, Osbourne, & Pope, 2013). These mythologies are given form by repeated negative reporting of issues faced by Indigenous communities, and then generalised as a pervasive problem for all Aboriginal Australians (AIHW, 2014;Tilbury, 2009).…”

“…These mythologies are given form by repeated negative reporting of issues faced by Indigenous communities, and then generalised as a pervasive problem for all Aboriginal Australians (AIHW, 2014;Tilbury, 2009). …”