Message from the Chairperson
It gives me great pleasure to open my first annual report as Chairperson of the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) Limited.
While I was recently elected as Chairperson in August 2023, I served as a Director throughout the reporting period. On behalf of the Board and ALS community, I extend thanks to my predecessor Mark Davies for his commitment and many contributions towards our mission.
In true ALS fashion, it was another busy year. The Board continued to focus on growing and strengthening the organisation, including governance and services to our communities.
When we look back at the work of the ALS in the last financial year, we can be immensely proud. The organisation supported more than 21,000 clients and their families, providing over 129,000 services.
We could not have delivered these services without core funding provided by both the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department, including through the National Legal Assistance Partnership, the NSW Government and the ACT Government. These services include several new and expanded services, enabling the ALS to offer holistic and wrap-around support for our communities in more locations.
As a key partner in Closing the Gap and in our role as justice lead for the NSW Coalition of Aboriginal Peak Organisations, the ALS is co-steering important initiatives in NSW. We know that systems are failing Aboriginal people, and we know they will only be fixed when our people have a genuine seat at the table. We are proud to be building the NSW Aboriginal Justice Partnership, a collaboration between our communities and the NSW Government so that we can work together on Closing the Gap.
Exciting initiatives funded by the NSW Government under Closing the Gap include a new pilot program supporting Aboriginal children to get bail earlier and more often; an Aboriginal community ‘throughcare’ strategy, looking at how our mob can be supported with effective and culturally safe programs to stay out of prison; and a Therapeutic Pathways for Children initiative – a plan to bring together different services to direct children away from prisons and towards healthier, more fulfilling lives. We also welcomed additional funding to keep sending ALS lawyers into children’s prisons, ensuring we can check on their welfare and legal needs face-to-face.
While we are very pleased that the Commonwealth, NSW and ACT Governments have provided funding for new discrete initiatives enabling us to provide new and expanded services, it is important to note that many of these funding contracts only last a couple of years. We know the injustices we are fighting cannot be resolved in this short time.
We need Government investment to deliver the sector strengthening work required and also to meet the demand for services and expectations of communities across NSW and the ACT, particularly for more core services in criminal, family, care and protection, and civil law. The ALS will continue to prioritise advocacy for the services our communities need and equitable funding to deliver high-quality, culturally appropriate support.
On behalf of the Board, I extend our sincere thanks to everyone who continued to make our work possible in 2022–23, including our communities, funders, partners, pro bono supporters and donors. In particular, I acknowledge the commendable work of ALS staff throughout another challenging year. Thank you for fighting hard for our communities.
Jason Allan
Chair
