Two Aboriginal children who were stuck in the UK child protection system without passports or visas are believed to have been brought back to Australia.

Whilst the exact details cannot be published due to the children's age and privacy laws, National Indigenous Times understands an effort from authorities - including the NSW Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) and the Federal Attorney-General - has seen the siblings, aged 14 and 15, returned home.

Sources close to the case say the situation was "appalling" and it is now understood several NGOs are in the process of demanding a briefing from state and federal authorities on how two children were allowed to remain in the UK without passports, as well as ensuring the situation would not happen again.

The two children have been in the care of the DCJ since they were removed from their Wiradjuri mother in 2010. They were fostered by a British couple in December 2017, and after both their visas expired, the then NSW Minister for Communities and Justice gave consent for the children to travel with their foster mother to the UK under the belief they would all return to Australia by October 2020.

However, when the flight was cancelled during the pandemic this didn't occur and in 2022 the NSW Children's Court granted parental responsibility to the British couple, ordering the Minister to ensure the children's contact with family - and connection with culture - was strongly maintained. It was unclear how this was supposed to happen from the UK.

The Aboriginal Child Placement Principle, which legislates Aboriginal children should be raised - where possible - in connection with their community, is a key tenet of the child protection system. It is to ensure children can grow up Aboriginal with a connection to country, community and culture.

If the children cannot be kept in an Aboriginal family or the wider Aboriginal community for any reason, it is imperative the children are kept in contact - through a care-plan - with their culture.

In 2023, the siblings' mother - known in court documents as DN - appealed the decision, arguing the court did not have jurisdiction to make orders regarding children living outside of Australia. On December 19, her appeal was successful, and she was granted parental responsibility.

However, until this week, the children remained in the UK.

It is understood the foster carers appeared to not have ­applied for further orders to keep the children, nor offer to accompany them back to Australia. At least one of the children had been in the UK foster care system in northern England for a period before coming back to Australia.

All sources who spoke to National Indigenous Times noted the sensitivity around the issue and strongly agreed the safety of the children was paramount. However, questions remain how two children were kept in the UK for two months after a court ruled they should be reunited with their mother.

Opposition child protection spokeswoman Kerrynne Liddle told National Indigenous Times it was obviously good news the children were back in Australia - and noted DN was "pleased" – but criticised the length of time it took for the process to play out.

"My question is, how was it able to occur for so long, and why did it take the Albanese government more than six weeks to get a passport, and nearly two months to get them home," " the Arrernte Senator for South Australia said.

SNAICC, the peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait ­Islander children, had previously called for the children to be brought home immediately, with chief executive Catherine Liddle saying it was beyond belief they had been kept away from their culture and community.

"The fact they are in the UK in the first place is yet another demonstration of how child protection systems are failing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families," the Arnette/Luritja woman said in January.

Senator Liddle said she would be asking questions of the government but noted "the most important thing now is to make sure that the responsible authorities do everything they can to support a successful transition of those children, not just back to this country, but back to their family".

"We have nearly 50,000 children in out of home care in Australia and most of those are Indigenous children," the Senator said. "That's quite simply not going to be fixed if we keep sending kids into residential and out-of-home care."

"We have to put more attention on supporting parents and to reunite with children and their families when that is safe to do so."

Last week the NSW Government announced an Indigenous-led taskforce to see as many Indigenous children - who make up 46 per cent of the 14,000 children in out-of-home care - returned to their families from the child protection system as is deemed safe.