Culturally-sensitive collaboration could help NT agencies support vulnerable young people

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2025-08-13 03:00

Australia; NSW; NT

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A culturally responsive, trauma-informed approach to multiagency collaboration is needed to support the most vulnerable young people in the NT, according to Australian researchers. The team noticed that very little research has examined the health and education needs of these young people, especially in Indigenous populations, so they set out to examine the child protection, youth justice, health, and education (multisystem) involvement of young Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in the NT by studying 2,584 young people aged between 10 and 17. Three groups of young people were identified, and the researchers say those from the poorest backgrounds had higher, more intensive levels of multisystem involvement and were more likely to use health and social services. Targeting education, family bonds, and unmet mental health needs may be the best ways of supporting vulnerable young people in the NT, they conclude.

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Journal/
conference: Australian Journal of Social Issues

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: Menzies School of Health Research, Charles Darwin University, The University of New South Wales

Funder: This work was supported by NT Department of Children and Families. NT Child and Youth Development Research Partnership.

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