The State of Victoria's Children
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2019 The State of Victoria’s Children Aboriginal Children and Young People Published by the Department of Education and Training Melbourne, March 2021 ISSN 2207-3272 © State of Victoria (Department of Education and Training) 2021 The copyright in this document is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. You are free to reuse the work under that licence, on the condition that you credit the State of Victoria (Department of Education and Training), indicate if changes were made and comply with the other licence terms available at: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en. The licence does not apply to: • any trademarks or branding, including the Victorian Government logo and the Department of Education and Training logo • images or photographs or other content supplied by third parties. Copyright queries may be directed to: [email protected] Authorised by the Department of Education and Training, 2 Treasury Place, East Melbourne, Victoria, 3002. FRONT COVER: © Copyright 2020 Corey, Gunaikurnai “Platypus on Country” THIS PAGE & BACK COVER: © Copyright 2019 Izzick Brooks, Gunaikurnai “Grandparents in the Dreamtime” State of Victoria’s Children report series The State of Victoria’s Children annual report series is produced by the Performance and Evaluation Division within Department of Education and Training on behalf of the Children’s Services Coordination Board. The Board comprises the Chief Commissioner for Police and the secretaries of the departments of Premier and Cabinet, Treasury and Finance, Education and Training, Health and Human Services, and Justice and Community Safety. Recommended citation: Department of Education and Training (2021). The State of Victoria’s Children 2019: Aboriginal Children and Young People, State of Victoria: Melbourne Acknowledgements The Department of Education and Training would like to acknowledge the contribution of the Aboriginal organisations and community members who provided advice, information and stories for this report, including: • Aboriginal Housing Victoria (AHV) • Aboriginal Wellness Foundation • Bendigo and District Aboriginal Co-operative (BDAC) • Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Co-Operative (GGAC) • Gunditjmara Aboriginal Cooperative • Koorie Youth Council (KYC) • Mallee District Aboriginal Service • Spark Health • Strong Brother Strong Sister • The Clontarf Foundation • Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (VACCA) • Victorian Aboriginal Children and Young People’s Alliance (the Alliance) • Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO) • Victorian Aboriginal Community Services Association Limited (VACSAL) • Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Incorporated (VAEAI) • Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service • Winda-Mara Aboriginal Corporation This report features artworks by Aboriginal children and young people generously provided by Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs) and community, including participants in the VACCA Art Mentoring Program. Additional images have been licenced through the Torch Project, an organisation providing support to Aboriginal offenders and ex-offenders in Victoria through cultural and arts vocational programs. The names of individuals appearing in the case studies and stories included in this report have been changed except where used with permission. 4 | The State of Victoria’s Children 2019: Aboriginal Children and Young People Language statement , Yuggera | “Posssum” | “Posssum” , Yuggera Jessica-Rose © Copyright 2020 2020 © Copyright We recognise the diversity of Aboriginal people living throughout Victoria. While the terms ‘Koorie’ or ‘Koori’ are commonly used to describe Aboriginal people of southeast Australia, we have used the term ‘Aboriginal’ to include all people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent who are living in Victoria, except where other terms are used in quotations, in the name of organisations and programs, or in the stories and information provided for the report by ACCOs and other organisations. The State of Victoria’s Children 2019: Aboriginal Children and Young People | 5 Ministerial foreword.......................................................................................................... 8 Executive Summary .........................................................................................................11 Aboriginal children and young people in Victoria .......................................................................................12 Areas of strength and improvement .......................................................................................................................14 Vulnerabilities and risks ......................................................................................................................................................16 Victorian initiatives progressing Aboriginal self-determination ....................................................21 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 22 The scope of this report ..................................................................................................................................................... 23 Notes on the data ....................................................................................................................................................................24 1. Victoria’s Aboriginal population ..........................................................................26 Key findings ...................................................................................................................................................................................29 Children and young people .............................................................................................................................................31 Kinship, family structure, and sources of support ......................................................................................34 Culture and Community ....................................................................................................................................................39 Cultural identification and participation ........................................................................................... 40 Self-Determination and youth voice ....................................................................................................... 47 Disadvantage and vulnerability .................................................................................................................................54 Socioeconomic status ..........................................................................................................................................54 Housing and homelessness.............................................................................................................................56 Disability ............................................................................................................................................................................61 Youth justice ..................................................................................................................................................................65 Family Violence ........................................................................................................................................................... 78 Out-of-home care .................................................................................................................................................... 82 2. Health, and Social and Emotional Wellbeing .............................................102 Key findings .................................................................................................................................................................................106 Maternal and Child Health ..............................................................................................................................................112 Childhood immunisation..................................................................................................................................................122 Oral health ................................................................................................................................................................................... 124 6 | The State of Victoria’s Children 2019: Aboriginal Children and Young People Overweight and obesity ....................................................................................................................................................125 Health related behaviours ..............................................................................................................................................127 Nutrition ...........................................................................................................................................................................127 Physical activity and sport .............................................................................................................................130 Smoking ...........................................................................................................................................................................138 Alcohol and other drugs ...................................................................................................................................139