Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs) across the Northern Territory are celebrating the strength of Aboriginal families on National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day while urging more Territorians to become kinship carers.
Marking Children's Day on Tuesday under the 2026 theme Living Our Truth, the Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance Northern Territory (AMSANT), North Australian Aboriginal Family Legal Service (NAAFLS) and North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) said the theme recognises the importance of storytelling and knowledge passed through generations.
It reflects the lived experiences of Aboriginal families across the Territory, they said in a statement, where families and communities continue to raise children with strong connections to culture, language and Country.
"Nowhere is that truth stronger than in the everyday reality of Aboriginal family life across the Territory: parents, grandparents, aunties, uncles and community holding children close, teaching language and Law, and carrying forward culture that has nurtured children for tens of thousands of years," NAAFLS chief executive Cindy Torrens said.
"Aboriginal families in the Territory want exactly what every family wants, for their children to be safe, to be loved, and to grow up knowing who they are and where they come from."
The organisations pointed to research from SNAICC, which highlighted connection to family, culture, language and Country as pivotal to a child's identity, healthy development and lifelong wellbeing.
NAAJA deputy chief executive Matthew Connop said the evidence reinforced what Aboriginal communities had long understood.
"National research consistently shows that when Aboriginal children are supported to stay connected to family, culture and Country," Mr Connop said. "Whether living at home or in kinship care, they have stronger identity, better mental health, and better life outcomes across health, education and wellbeing."
Held annually on August 4 since 1988, National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day is observed on a date historically used as the shared birthday for children of the Stolen Generations who did not know their date of birth.
The latest Closing the Gap data showed that while preschool enrolment (Target 3) has already been met, across the country, the proportion of children in out-of-home care and the proportion of children developmentally on track continue to worsen.
In the NT, controversial new laws have been introduced that remove the legal enforceability of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle (ATSICPP) by requiring it to be applied only "as far as practicable". They also cap protection orders at two years in favour of permanency placements.
Despite the ATSICPP, the latest data shows only 17 per cent of First Nations children aged 0-17 in out-of-home care in the Northern Territory were placed with an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander relative or kin — the lowest rate in the country.
The organisations are using Children's Day to encourage Territorians, particularly Aboriginal people with family, cultural or community connections to children needing care, to consider becoming kinship carers.
Mr Connop said kinship care provided children with lifelong connections that could not be replicated elsewhere.
"When we invest properly in kinship care, we are investing in a child's whole future," he said.
AMSANT chair Rob McPhee said increasing the number of registered kinship carers would help more Aboriginal children remain connected to their families, communities and Country, rather than "separated from everything that makes them who they are".
"If you have room in your home and your heart for a child who is family, kin or community, we encourage you to reach out to your local ACCO or the NT kinship care team to find out more about becoming a kinship carer," he said.
