Almost 24,000 Indigenous children were placed in care at least once in the last financial year, new data has revealed.

The latest figures from the Productivity Commission shows 23,956 First Nations children were in at least one out-of-home care (OOHC) placement in 2023-24—over 43 per cent of all children Australia-wide.

Nationally, Indigenous children aged 0-17 were placed at least once in OOHC in the last financial year at a rate of 60.6 per 1,000, 10.4 times higher than non-Indigenous children and a slight increase from 12 months previous.

In Victoria, despite a number of 'progressive' reforms around Indigenous self-determination, including the initiation of Treaty negotiations between the First peoples' assembly and the state government, the removal of Aboriginal children continues to increase.

Indigenous children were placed at least once in OOHC throughout 2023-24 at a rate of 113.9 per 1,000 children—more than 18 times that of non-Indigenous children.

The Yoorrook Justice Commission heard stories of child removal related to domestic violence, poverty, and racism during their hearings last year.

These include unborn notifications against First Nations mothers allegedly seeing one in five children being removed before they are three months old.

Witnesses told of Indigenous victims of domestic violence being wrongly identified as the perpetrators before having their children removed, whilst societal factors - such as poverty - being looked on by child protection workers as neglect were also highlighted by experts in the sector.

Deputy Chair, Sue-Anne Hunter, said it was clear the child protection system in Victoria was "failing First Peoples".

"Yoorrook Commissioners have provided the Victorian government with a roadmap to reform the system and end the injustice against our people," Commissioner Hunter told National Indigenous Times.

"Yet the system remains broken for our people. It is time for action."

At the end of June 2024, 19,985 Indigenous children were in OOHC placements across the country. NSW had the highest number of Indigenous children in placement at the end of the financial year, with 6,312 (45 per cent of all OOHC children in NSW) whilst Victoria had the highest rate, with 90.5 Aboriginal children per 1,000 in OOHC as of June 30.

"As First Peoples of these lands with an ongoing connection to Country that goes back tens of thousands of years, it is heartbreaking to know our children are still being taken from us in large numbers," Commissioner Hunter said.

"More than 50 years on from the Stolen Generations, nearly three decades since the 'Bringing Them Home' report and 18 months on from the Yoorrook for Justice report and the rate of removal is getting worse. How can this be?"

In June last year, Coroner Simon McGregor said the child protection system in Victoria was suffering from systemic racism, after a 17-year-old Wemba Wemba child, known as XY, took her own life after multiple requests to connect with her Indigenous culture were ignored by those responsible for caring for her.

Victorian Minister for Children, Lizzie Blandthorn, said the government knows more needs to be done to address the over-representation of Indigenous children in OOHC.

She noted a number of legislative reforms the government has introduced to promote self-determination and put Indigenous experts "at the front and centre of decision making".

These include $191 million in funding for the Wungurilwil Gapgapduir: Aboriginal Children and Families Agreement, as well as support for Indigenous-led pilot health programs.

"We have the highest rate of Aboriginal children placed in kinship care in the country, with 82 per cent of children placed with kin compared to the national average of 63 per cent," Minister Blandthorn told National Indigenous Times.

"The safety and wellbeing of children is at the centre of everything we do, and we are listening to First Peoples about policies that directly affect them so that we can deliver practical change."

The data from the productivity commission comes as the child placement principle - designed to ensure children removed from their homes for their safety are kept within their own culture, family, and kin - comes under increased attack.

Proposed changes to legislation in the Northern Territory making it easier to remove Aboriginal children from their communities has been labelled "unwarranted" and lacking in evidence by the NT's Child Commissioner.

This has been exacerbated by a number of media articles pushing a supposed narrative of danger for children if the Principle remains, which has been conflated by the Coalition's promise of a royal commission into child sexual abuse in remote communities.

Speaking at a youth justice senate inquiry on Monday, SNAICC chief executive Catherine Liddle said the media has a big story, but it "doesn't necessarily tell the right story".

She said stories in the media arguing the Principle had led to the death of children "is ridiculous".

Speaking at the AbSec forum in Penrith last year, Ms Liddle said the child protection system in Australia is "deliberately intended to harm" First Nations people.

"Deliberately intended to remove as many children from their families as possible. It was built to remove children from their families," Ms Liddle said in November.

"Before colonisation, we didn't need a system to protect our children….to put our children in prison."