Aboriginal Affairs Information Pack
Overview
The Department of Education and Communities serves the community by leading the provision of
world class education and training and supporting sustainable and vibrant communities. The
Department is one of the largest organisations, public or private, in Australia.
The role of Aboriginal Affairs is to work with Aboriginal communities to increase their confidence,
capacity and opportunity to determine their own futures. We will do this by facilitating partnerships
between Aboriginal communities and others that recognise and affirm their position and power as the
first peoples of NSW; by supporting effective Aboriginal community governance; by increasing
Aboriginal peoples’ preparedness to achieve improved economic and social prosperity; and by
reinforcing Aboriginal people’s confidence and expertise in their own cultures.
The key outcome areas for Aboriginal Affairs are:
 Leadership within Government on Aboriginal affairs: Lead, monitor and report on the
implementation of OCHRE, provide strategic and evidence-based advice to inform policy debate
and reform, and broker solutions to address complex ross-cluster issues.
 Governance and Capacity Building: Strengthen Aboriginal community leadership and
management to drive better service delivery, including improved coordination and responsiveness,
reduced duplication and greater local responsibility and accountability. Administer the Aboriginal
Land Rights Act and work with Local Land Council networks
 Culture and Healing: Promote community cohesion, healing and reconciliation through support for
reclamation, revitalisation and contemporary expression of their Aboriginal cultures in NSW.
 Economic Development: Lead, monitor and report on the implementation of OCHRE, provide
strategic and evidence based advice to inform policy debate and reform, and broker solutions to
address complex cross-cluster issues
Four regional offices (Sydney, Coffs Harbour, Dubbo and Batemans Bay) and four sub-regional
offices (Newcastle, Tamworth, Broken Hill and Bourke) lead engagement with Aboriginal communities
to support the establishment, development and effective operation of community governance
mechanisms, improve participation in local economies and facilitate more effective relationships
between Aboriginal communities and agencies to improve the coordination, responsiveness and
accountability of services.
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Aboriginal Affairs Information Pack | Department of Education and Communities
Structure
Aboriginal Affairs is comprised of four Directorates: Community & Economic Development; Strategy &
Coordination; Policy & Reform and Regional Coordination.
Each Directorate reports to the Executive Director, with the Executive Director of Aboriginal Affairs
reporting directly to the Secretary of the Department of Education and Communities.
Please see the attached Organisation Chart.
More than 50 per cent of roles within Aboriginal Affairs have been identified to be assigned to
Aboriginal people.
These roles marked in red in the following structural charts are “identified roles”
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Aboriginal Affairs Information Pack Department of Education and Communities
Community & Economic Development Directorate
The Community & Economic Development Directorate is responsible for the development and
implementation of initiatives to improve outcomes for Aboriginal people in accordance with community
aspirations and consistent with Government objectives under NSW 2012 and OCHRE: the NSW
Aboriginal affairs plan. It establishes, negotiates and manages whole-of-government and intergovernment approaches to delivering the strategic intent of OCHRE and other program initiatives for
which Aboriginal Affairs has carriage, including governance and capacity strengthening, culture and
healing, and economic development.
Governance and Capacity
 Leads a significant change management agenda across government/s to reset the relationship
between Aboriginal community governance bodies and government such that services are more
responsive, flexible, coordinated and accountable to Aboriginal communities.
Partnerships
 Develops and maintains strategic partnerships to broker improved economic development
outcomes and promote healing and culture.
Regional Coordination
 Leads and supports the integration of governance, capacity, partnerships and brokerage through
the Aboriginal Affairs regional network.
Family Records
 Provides a Family Records service to Aboriginal people.
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Aboriginal Affairs Information Pack Department of Education and Communities
Strategy & Coordination Directorate
The Strategy & Coordination Directorate consists of 3 units: Business & Executives Support; Planning
and Coordination, and Research & Evaluation. The Directorate includes organisational business
support services including business planning and reporting, ICT, finance and human resource
management, stakeholder communication, and research and evaluation.
The Directorate is responsible for
 OCHRE oversight, coordination and public reporting, monitoring the implementation of the NSW
Government’s OCHRE plan, reporting on progress and evaluating its effectiveness.
 Undertaking the monitoring, evaluation, reporting and improvement framework for Aboriginal
Affairs and the identified major projects of the agency.
 An Aboriginal affairs research agenda providing an evidence base that supports policy advice, and
informs debate and future policy development.
 Stakeholder engagement, including collecting, managing and disseminating a broad range of
Aboriginal affairs information utilising social media, website management and other communication
strategies.
 Providing Aboriginal Affairs business support functions including leadership of workforce
management, compliance, internal governance, project management, financial management,
communication, accommodation and associated business support functions.
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Aboriginal Affairs Information Pack Department of Education and Communities
Policy & Reform Directorate
The Policy & Reform Directorate develops and influences policy and reform initiatives to improve
outcomes for Aboriginal people, in accordance with community aspirations, and consistent with NSW
Government objectives under NSW 2012 and OCHRE; the NSW Aboriginal affairs plan.
The Directorate leads whole-of-government and inter-government negotiations to ensure alignment,
integration and coordination of policies, reforms and approaches, to achieve the strategic intent of
OCHRE, and supports the Executive Director’s participation in a range of executive and high level
decision-making and policy setting forums, such as the Social Policy Senior Officers Group, the
OCHRE Senior Executive Committee and NSW Domestic and Family Violence Council.
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Aboriginal Affairs Information Pack Department of Education and Communities
Regional Coordination Directorate
The Regional Coordination Directorate leads the delivery of regional based activities directly to
Aboriginal communities across NSW.
Staff work collaboratively across Government/s and with employers, non-government organisations
and Aboriginal governance bodies to drive systemic improvements in service delivery, employment
outcomes and leadership capability at the regional and local level, to support the aspirations of
Aboriginal people for social, economic and cultural independence.
Directorate staff within the regions provide support through Local Decision Making models for
Aboriginal community leadership and governance; and brokering training, support and mentoring
services to enhance the capacity in Aboriginal communities to manage their own affairs.
Directorate staff identify local and regional issues requiring a solution broker approach, and
subsequently coordinate the development and implementation of an appropriate response. This
function arises from OCHRE and made up of two roles, one managing coordinated responses to long
term and intractable issues in Aboriginal affairs policy and the other acting to support Aboriginal
communities to develop local responses to local issues.
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Aboriginal Affairs Information Pack Department of Education and Communities
Regions
Sydney Newcastle Region
Illawarra – South East Region
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Aboriginal Affairs Information Pack Department of Education and Communities
Greater Northern Region
Greater Western Region
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Aboriginal Affairs Information Pack Department of Education and Communities
Regional Map
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Aboriginal Affairs Information Pack Department of Education and Communities