Empowering young mob to lead in NSW

AbSec and Mounty Aboriginal Youth & Community Services is to convene a youth-led forum in Sydney on May 19-20 to place Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people at the centre of out-of-home care reform.

The two-day Quarterly Sector Youth Forum aims to align evidence, sector leadership and lived experience to shape next steps in New South Wales.

Key Points

AbSec – NSW Child, Family and Community Peak Aboriginal Corporation and MAYCS will host what they describe as one of the most significant recent gatherings of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people, families, sector leaders and government. Organisers state the forum is driven by a simple commitment: young people must be central to the conversations and decisions that shape their lives.

The scale of the challenge is laid out in the data. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children make up seven per cent of the child population in NSW, yet account for 45 per cent of all children in out-of-home care (OOHC) — approximately 6,500 children as of June 2025.

The 2024 NSW Auditor-General reported the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) made “negligible progress” on structural reform and, at the current pace, it will take 57 years to transfer case management of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in OOHC to Aboriginal-led organisations.

“For too long, the systems that most profoundly impact our children, young people and families have been designed, delivered and governed without us,” Absec CEO John Leha said.

“We see the consequences of that every single day. We see it in the data. We see it in the courtrooms. We see it in the faces of young people who have been told their whole lives that others know what’s best for them.”

AbSec said the forum would bring together evidence and sector stakeholders while centring the lived experience of young people to inform what comes next. The organisation has framed self-determination as a right that, in practice, requires Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to have the authority to make decisions on issues that affect them.

Inside the forum program

The forum will open with a lived experience panel, When Protection Becomes Profit, Children Pay the Price, followed by targeted workshops and cultural programming. Day one features sessions on OOHC reform, Cultural Care Planning — including grief, loss and Sorry Business — and aftercare. The first day will close with a performance by Dhinawan Yarn.

Day two is designated for ACCOs and Mob Only, with a focus on turning evidence into action. The program includes Know Your Rights sessions for young people, DCJ updates on the OOHC Strategy and organisational changes, a housing solutions co-design workshop, and a Yarning Circle on Intergenerational Advocacy.

• Lived experience panel: When Protection Becomes Profit, Children Pay the Price
• Workshops: OOHC reform; Cultural Care Planning, including grief, loss and Sorry Business; aftercare
• Day two (ACCOs and Mob Only): Know Your Rights; DCJ OOHC Strategy updates; housing solutions co-design; Yarning Circle on Intergenerational Advocacy
• Cultural performance: Dhinawan Yarn

Youth leadership is a central organising principle of the event. MAYCS describes the forum as youth-led rather than a space where others speak on behalf of young people. According to the organisation, its Mounty Yarns work across communities has shown that young people know what is not working in out-of-home care and family support because they have lived it.

Live performances

“There’s too many young people being spoken about instead of being spoken with – and I know that because I’ve lived it,” youth ambassador Tait, from Mounty Aboriginal Youth and Community Services.

“I know what it feels like to have systems control your life but show no genuine care for you or your future. When lived experiences are shared with the right people, they can help create change.”

The program also includes a live performance by Gomeroi artist Kobie Dee, from Maroubra on Bidjigal Land, highlighting the role of storytelling and creativity in connecting with young people. Organisers describe Kobie Dee as a reminder that culture, creativity and community are inseparable, and that the strength of Aboriginal young people is expressed in many forms.

The forum is supported by Cages Foundation, MacKillop Family Services, NSW Government’s Office for Youth, the Pastel Foundation, Act for Kids, Legal Aid NSW and Youth Action. AbSec and MAYCS say this support signals sector willingness to act alongside young Mob, not solely in words.