The launch of the National Child and Family Investment Strategy has been welcomed by the peak body for Indigenous children and families, which says it can shift the focus from crisis response to prevention.

Announced on Tuesday, the strategy centres on redirecting funding towards early support to reduce child abuse and neglect, and expanding culturally safe, community-led services for First Nations children and families by shifting investment to Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs).

"Every child deserves to grow up safe and connected to their family, community and culture. Investing early helps keep children and families safe and supported in their own communities," the federal Department of Social Services said.

Developed between the Department and SNAICC - National Voice for our Children, alongside the Safe and Supported Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership Group and the ACCO and non-government sector, the strategy aims to establish a "first of its kind" nationally agreed roadmap to guide governments through the transition.

"Extensive evidence highlights that early support to children and families focusing on strengthening families and addressing the underlying drivers of child neglect and abuse must lie at the heart of efforts to ensure Australian children are safe and supported," the strategy says.

"In line with the evidence, it is critical that children, young people and families are referred to and actively engaged through culturally safe and accessible support services to prevent contact with child protection systems."

Indigenous children are removed at 10.9 times the rate of non-Indigenous children, according to the latest Closing the Gap data.

SNAICC chief executive Catherine Liddle said the strategy will pave the way for governments to "truly commit" to closing the gap by offering a "framework for genuine systemic reform".

"But a strategy alone won't change outcomes, implementation and commitment will," Ms Liddle said.

"For too long, child protection systems have focused on crisis responses and removing children, rather than investing early to keep families strong and together."

Her comments reflect SNAICC's latest Family Matters Report, which found a large majority of child protection expenditure is directed towards statutory intervention and out-of-home care, rather than prevention.

In the NT, this included the "duplication of effort and gaps in spending between and within government", while family support services were often "poorly targeted and did not always account for the cultural strengths or needs of children and families".

Ms Liddle argued governments need to urgently redirect investment into intervention and prevention, and into ACCO-led services, where evidence shows they will make the biggest difference for Indigenous children.

"The Federal Government and the majority of States and Territories committed to the Strategy at the end of 2025, with implementation plans for each jurisdiction due for completion by late 2026," she said.

"Now they need to take action to follow that commitment through."