Family Group Conferences

Keeping children strong and safe

Family group conference for: ………………………………………………………………

Your co-ordinator is ………………………………

Your conference will be held ………………

……………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………

Day and time …………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………

Courts Administration AuthorityYouth Court of South Australia

Conferencing UnitPh: (08) 8204 0594 Fax: (08) 8204 0591

1

What is a family group conference?

wor

king t

ogether

your children

The conference is about people sitting down, sharing ideas, yarning and making a family plan to keep their children strong and safe.

your conference

Making

a plan

your mob

2

South Australian law says that children should live with their families wherever possible....

and ...

Aboriginal children should stay strongly connected with their family,

community and culture if they cannot stay at home

law

Aboriginal lore

South Australian law

United Nations convention

on the rights of the child

Why is there a conference?

3

South Australia has laws about children

• being safe• going to school• staying healthy

and laws about people• not hurting each other• not drinking too much• not using bad drugs

4

Are the children safe and strong?

grog fighting sadness drugs

When

there is

too much

Children feel When there is too little sad

scared tired hungry lost angry bored

food love laughter

sleep play going to sc

hool

5

Children feelsad scared tired hungry lost angry bored

A family group conference can happen if there are worries about the children

6

People will get together to talk about the children

• are they safe?• who will grow them up?• who can help?

What happens at a family group conference?

7

Who will be at the conference?

The co-ordinator will ask you who should be at your conference… family, aunties, grandparents, cousins, uncles…

The co-ordinator will also invite other people… Department for Child Protection, child advocate, cultural person and maybe… interpreters, school or health worker

8

What do the children sayA child advocate will meet with older children and support them to attend the conference or speak for them at the conference

For young children and babies the child advocate will talk about what children need to grow up strong and safe

Listening to the voice of children

9

What will we talk about?law

lore

strengths

and worries

working together

help

strong

family

culture

10

the conference has 3 parts

listening to each otherwhat’s working well?what are the worries?what needs to change?

family time for yarningwhat do you think?what will you do?do you need help?

agreement timesharing ideas

making a valid plan

at the conference

11

strong familykeeping children strong and safe

who will teach

the childre

n?

who will take the children fishing and hunting?who will get the children to

school?

getting it sorted

who will share the stories and language?

culture kinshipelders communitymusic

storiespaintingsport

country

12

who else can help?

Aboriginal Services• afss• legal aid• pika wiya• well-being centre• prisoner support• nunkuwarrin yunti• npy womens council

Health Services

• child health nurse

• speech therapist

• doctors

Support Services• counselling• grief and loss• mental health• domestic violence• drugs & alcohol

Community Groups

• centacare• unitingcare• anglicare• salvation army• alcoholics anonymous

13

the valid plan, will tell everyone what needs to be done, and who will do it.

Support Services• counselling• grief and loss• mental health• domestic violence• drugs & alcohol

what happens next?

sometimes we get together again to see how the plan is working, this is called a family group conference review meeting.

Acknowledgements.

At all our conferences, the conferencing unit acknowledges and respects the traditional custodians whose ancestral lands we meet upon. We acknowledge the deep feelings of attachment and relationship of Aboriginal peoples to country. We also pay respects to the cultural authority of Aboriginal people attending from other areas of South Australia and Australia present at the conferences.

The Conferencing Unit would like to thank Donna and her family for the artwork produced and donated for this project, and for their ongoing support of family group conferences.This booklet has been developed by Jan and Annie and produced by the Conferencing Unit as part of the 20 year anniversary of conferencing in South Australia.

October 2018