“We don’t want you to come in and make a decision for us”: Traversing cultural authority and responsive regulation in Australian child protection systems

The Ngulluk Koolunga Ngulluk Koort (Our Children Our Heart) project conducted extensive Elder and community consultation to develop principles and practice recommendations for child protection governance in Western Australia. We explore these principles and practice recommendations and highlight the need for culturally safe community consultation and governance with a focus on repairing damage incurred by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community from past child protection policies.

Citation:
Hamilton SL, Maslen S, Farrant B, Ilich N, Michie C. “We don’t want you to come in and make a decision for us”: Traversing cultural authority and responsive regulation in Australian child protection systems. Austr J Soc Iss. 2022; 57(2):236-251.

Keywords:
Child welfare; cultural governance; elder-led decision making; responsive regulation

Abstract:
The Ngulluk Koolunga Ngulluk Koort (Our Children Our Heart) project conducted extensive Elder and community consultation to develop principles and practice recommendations for child protection governance in Western Australia. We explore these principles and practice recommendations and highlight the need for culturally safe community consultation and governance with a focus on repairing damage incurred by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community from past child protection policies.