Developing cultural safety
'Organisations really need to look to make genuine networks with Aboriginal forums and local Aboriginal groups, to be able to promote the organisation and really be taking the message to them that you are looking to have a family violence service, which is inclusive of Aboriginal people and provides a culturally safe response.'
– Paula Mason, Family Violence Initiatives, Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency
For First Nations1 candidates, it’s important to ensure your workplace and recruitment practices are culturally safe.
The Department of Families, Fairness and Housing’s Cultural safety (opens in a new window) helps the department and mainstream health and community services strengthen their cultural safety. It does this through a process of continuous learning and practice improvement. Part 1 of the framework outlines the vision and principles underpinning cultural safety. It also describes the cultural safety continuum. Part 2 has a tool you can use to reflect on and improve cultural safety in your organisation.
Tips to improve cultural safety:
- Consider how you can build positive relationships with local First Nations groups and organisations. Reach out to your local Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation or other community groups. Building these connections can help improve your understanding of local contexts and cultural needs.
- Ensure your organisation has a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). For more information about developing a RAP, visit Reconciliation (opens in a new window)
- Set up an internal working group to ensure continuous quality improvement for cultural safety. Make sure you ask for client feedback to improve your practices.
- Put in place supports for First Nations staff that considers the extra cultural load they carry. This could include access to cultural supervision and cultural leave.
- Ensure staff get ongoing training opportunities to upskill and enable two-way learning.
- If you have a designated cultural support role, be clear about why you need this role. Ensure the role integrates with the rest of the organisation.
- Don’t automatically assign First Nations clients to First Nations staff without checking with both the client and worker.
- Ensure all staff take part in cultural safety training.
The video below has tips for recruiting First Nations workers.
Other resources
- Generation One’s Everybody’s Business: a handbook for indigenous (opens in a new window)
- VPSC’s Aboriginal cultural capability (opens in a new window)
- Australian Public Service Commission’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander recruitment
References
1. Note, the term First Nations and Aboriginal are used interchangeably throughout this resource to refer to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander individuals, families and communities.
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