Your story, culture and identity

We all have a right to know who we are and where we are from. The people, places and stories of our families are all part of our unique story.

Carers and caseworkers are expected to help you build and maintain your cultural identity. This is done by supporting relationships with your parents, siblings, extended family and community, and by allowing you to meaningfully enjoy your cultural rights including your language and cultural ties. 

For Aboriginal children and young people, this might include knowing your mob, your Nation and language group, and how you relate to others.  

Building your cultural support plan

Your caseworker will work with you to develop a cultural support plan. This will outline all the things that will be done to ensure that you have a sense of belonging and remain connected to your culture. Your caseworker will also work with others who understand your cultural background, such as your family or community. 

Your cultural support plan will include:

• understanding your country/nation(s), language group(s), linguistic background, religious/spiritual background, and communities of belonging

• completing a genogram, which is a map of where you fit within your family and community

• plans to spend time with family, extended family, kinship, and community relationships

• exploring activities and events that you can participate in

• identifying organisations that support your culture and can promote connection and understanding. 

Living away from your community and culture can be challenging and it can create feelings of being misunderstood and isolated. 

Your carer and caseworker are there to help you feel supported, safe and connected to your community and culture.

It may be important that you have: 

• certain foods you like eating

• particular cultural beliefs

• days you celebrate

• spiritual connections that are important to you 

• relationships with other members of your cultural group.

You should talk about what's important to you with your carer and caseworker. You can also ask them to help you:

• make connections or keep connections with your community

• make connections to supportive cultural, community or religious organisations

• communicate in English or communicate in your language (an interpreter or community member/organisation can be helpful).  

Remember that racism and discrimination are never acceptable, and you have the right to be free from it. Your carer and caseworker are responsible to help you if you're experiencing discrimination, prejudice or racism, and ensuring that you are respected. Read what to do if you're experiencing racism by ReachOut if you would like more information.

You can access your care records if you're over 18 and want to learn about your cultural and religious heritage. This should include a copy of your cultural care plan. There are agencies that can support you or connect you with other community organisations.

These include:

• AbSec – NSW Child, Family and Community Peak Aboriginal Corporation
• NSW Aboriginal Land Council
• Multicultural NSW – list of community organisations.

It’s important that you’re able to explore safe and supportive family and community networks. Your caseworker can help you find who is in your family by working with you, your parents, and other important adults.  

Your caseworker might do any of the following:

• engage in Family Finding

• hold a Family Group Conference

• create a genogram. This is a map of where you fit within your family and community, and you can ask your caseworker for a copy afterwards.  

Your caseworker is responsible for supporting you to develop and maintain your family connections and networks. This includes spending time with your siblings, family/kin and/or community. Speak to your caseworker about who you would like to spend time with and what fun things you would like to do. 

If you’re over 18 and trying to find family, accessing your care records can help you start gathering information about them. Learn more about how to access your care records.

You may wish to get a 'Confirmation of Aboriginality' after you turn 18. This can be useful for accessing some specific services and programs or may be required for you to participate in community organisations.

If you’re an Aboriginal child or young person, your caseworker is responsible for supporting you to be eligible for a Confirmation of Aboriginality.

To be eligible, you need to show that you:

• are of Aboriginal descent
• identify as Aboriginal, and
• are accepted as an Aboriginal person by your Aboriginal community. 

A Confirmation of Aboriginality can be provided by a:

•  Local Aboriginal Land Council (LALC), or
• an Aboriginal community organisation incorporated under the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006.

A Confirmation of Membership provided by a LALC is also proof of Aboriginality.

Thinking early about how you will visit family after you turn 18 will help you understand what your expectations are and what will work for you. This will help you maintain healthy family connections whilst keeping your safety in mind. This is something you can do with your caseworker during your leaving care planning.

Some questions you can ask yourself and talk to your caseworker about are: 

• What will visits look like after I turn 18? 

• How will visits be organised?

• Do I have any concerns about my safety during visits?

• Will I still have siblings in care? If so, what will my contact look like with them, and how often will I see them?

• Do I have any concerns about my relationship with my family after I turn 18?