By OLIVER BROWN

A recent accreditation acquired by the Coonamble Aboriginal Health Service (CAHS) seeks to have the dual benefit of supporting local children in need of full-time care while providing new employment opportunities for the region as they add non-health programs to their suite of services. 

In December 2021, it was announced CAHS had received provincial accreditation to become a local statutory out-of-home care (OOHC) and supported OOHC provider. 

CAHS CEO Phil Naden said the organisation was actually approached by the state government to run the local program but could see the value in taking on foster-care responsibilities in the area. 

"(We recognised) a high need of kids in out-of-home care who required services which extended to the AMS," Mr Naden said. 

"At that time, it was approved by the board who thought it would be good to have that extension of service be complementary to the AMS." 

According to the Department of Communities and Justice CAHS was identified by the NSW Child, Family and Community Peak Aboriginal Corporation (AbSec) as an organisation to deliver local permanency support services to children and young people. 

The spokesperson said the state government was committed to keeping families together, regardless of their background. 

"It is vital that for Aboriginal children, we do this in a way where they are connected to culture and community," they said.  

"The NSW Government remains committed to working with Aboriginal communities and Aboriginal organisations across NSW to increase Aboriginal self-determination and Aboriginal participation in child protection decision-making." 

The spokesperson said having a pre-established Coonamble organisation like CAHS involved would help ensure local children in need of a new home could find one that would fit them best. 

"This is to ensure that the local community can better support the identity and cultural needs of Aboriginal children should they require entry into OOHC," they said. 

Mr Naden said the new OOHC branch will be run out of a currently vacant building owned by the organisation on the corner of Taloon Street and Namoi Street. 

"At the moment, we're in the process of negotiating the contract to have that building as our out-of home care office - it will be a layout similar to a small office with privacy rooms, board rooms, office space and a consult room," he said. 

"We've had ongoing meetings about it over the past 12 months, so we're hoping that anytime soon, we can get some funds available to start fitting it out. We're ready to go, we're just waiting on contractual services for the fit-out fee." 

At the moment, CAHS's provisional accreditation is only for three years, however, Mr Naden said he did see it becoming a permanent service and a new source of employment for the area. 

"I envisage there would be about six to eight positions working out of that building who would all be new staff - of course we will try to recruit locally, but if the expertise we need is not in Coonamble, we will look elsewhere," he said. 

The office will also not only service Coonamble, with the accreditation also covering communities such as Gilgandra, Baradine, Coonabarabran, Walgett and Lightning Ridge according to Mr Naden. 

"It will be a full regional service for this area - negotiations are ongoing, but in due course I think we will see it also expanding into Mudgee and Dubbo. I do envisage this getting bigger over time," he said.