Narrabundah House Indigenous Supported Accommodation (NHISA) is run in partnership with government and non government agencies. It provides supported accommodation for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men aged 12 to 18 years, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The services offered by Narrabundah House Indigenous Supported Accommodation include culturally based residential and…
Lowana Youth Services, located in Kambah, was established in 1989. It provided transitional housing for young people experiencing homelessness and/or leaving youth justice institutions. It included a safe house for young women escaping family violence. Lowana Youth Services was closed by the ACT government in April 2012 as part of a re-design of specialist homelessness…
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Kinship and Foster Care Service is part of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Services (ATSIS), Australian Capital Territory Government. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Kinship and Foster Care Service aims to provide culturally appropriate placement options for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people who…
The Office for Children, Youth and Family Support was established in 2004. It is an administrative unit of the Community Services Directorate (formerly the Department of Disability, Housing and Community Services). The Office works to provide care, support and protection services to children, young people and families in the Australian Capital Territory. In addition, the…
Adoption is the legal process which transfers the legal rights and responsibilities of being a parent from a child’s birth parents to adoptive parents. The Adoption of Children Ordinance 1938 regulated adoption in the ACT for the first time. The 1938 Ordinance was repealed by the Adoption of Children Ordinance 1965 which marked a distinct…
The Australian Capital Territory (Self-Government) Act (Act no. 106/1988) marked the commencement of self-government in 1988. With the passage of this Act, the ACT was provided a fully elected legislature, an executive and an independent court system. Prior to 1988 the Australian Federal Government and the Commonwealth Parliament governed the Australian Capital Territory from its…
The Adoption of Children Ordinance 1965 (Act no. 15/1965) marked a distinct turning point in adoption law, recognising that the paramount consideration for decisions made should be the welfare and interests of the child concerned. This legislation was passed in response to the Commonwealth government’s push for model legislation to harmonise adoption law in Australia….
The Children’s Services Act 1986 (Act no. 13/1986) was Commonwealth legislation, which emphasised strengthening and preserving the relationship between the child and his or her family and the desirability of leaving a child in their home. It introduced the legal term ‘child in need of care’, and also took a significant step in separating ‘children…
The Aborigines Welfare Ordinance 1954 (Act no. 8/1954) was Commonwealth legislation, established to ‘provide for the welfare and control of Aborigines, particularly those at the Wreck Bay reserve’ (Jervis Bay Territory). The 1954 Ordinance followed the lines of the New South Wales Aborigines Protection Acts, 1909-1943 and was approved by the Aborigines Welfare Board of…
The Child Welfare Ordinance 1957 (Act no. 17/1957) ended the application of NSW child welfare legislation in the ACT. A child committed to an institution by an ACT court could still be removed to NSW for detention and maintenance in a State institution. It commenced on 1 March 1958, and was repealed by the Children’s…
Dec 18, 2024
Nov 15, 2024
