Queensland Government
Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services

Twenty across-government actions headline a new strategy to improve the wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Queensland’s urban and regional areas.

They focus on education, employment, health and housing opportunities and tie the state government to making services and programs more targeted and effective. They range from creating seven new child and family centres to reducing homelessness by one-third.

Among the key government actions are:

  • Creating 2800 state government jobs for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and providing assistance to 6250 jobseekers.
  • Opening 38 extra kindergarten services where at least six per cent of four year olds are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.
  • Establishing the Southern Queensland Centre of Excellence in Indigenous Primary Health Care to improve health services in south-east Queensland.
  • Implementing homelessness community action plans in Brisbane, Hervey Bay, Cairns, Caboolture, Mount Isa, Toowoomba and the Gold Coast.

The actions are one of three planks to the state government’s new strategy, LEAP: Learning Earning Active Places, launched in July. The strategy also includes a positive media campaign called deadly stories and community-based “closing the gap” actions known as LEAP local.

Ron Weatherall, who heads the state government’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Services, said the strategy’s goal was to establish a community-wide movement to improve outcomes.

“The common thread is grassroots action,” he said. “There is a part for everyone to play – Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Queenslanders and non- Indigenous Queenslanders, the government and general public, the private and community sectors, the young and old.”

LEAP is concentrated on urban and larger regional areas, which is home to roughly three in every four Indigenous Queenslanders – around 113,000.

It grew from talks with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members in 2009 and 2010.

The talks, into what was needed in urban and regional areas, identified three themes:

  • good education and early childhood development to give children a good start to life
  • culturally-appropriate service delivery
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander involvement in developing the solutions.

“A key message from consultation was that the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in urban and regional areas differ to people living in more remote areas of Queensland,” Ron said.

“Disadvantage in cities, towns and regional centres is not just about a lack of services or opportunities. In many urban and regional areas, access to existing services needs to be improved to make them more effective, targeted and responsive to the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Queenslanders.”

The end result is a strategy of five objectives:

  • Strengthening the capabilities (health, wellbeing, education and skills) of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, focusing on individual development.
  • Increasing access to social, economic and cultural opportunities and addressing the barriers to participation.
  • Promoting healthy lifestyle choices that lead to positive long-term change for families and communities, including prevention and early intervention.
  • Strengthening relationships and connections between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the wider Queensland community to promote social cohesion and reconciliation.
  • Supporting the cultural identities of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in cities, towns and regional centres.

LEAP is a rolling strategy. There will be a new program of action every three years. For further information, visit: www.communities.qld.gov.au/atsis