Across the country, frontline workers are stepping up to deliver stronger, safer and more culturally respectful support to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families. Project Waterways is helping make that shift possible.
Project Waterways is a national training initiative led by SNAICC and co-delivered with partners including AbSec Learning & Development Centre, Victorian Aboriginal Child and Community Agency (VACCA), the Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Protection Peak (QATSICPP), Kornar Winmil Yunti (KWY) and Yamurrah.
Funded by the Department of Social Services, the program equips practitioners with practical tools to deliver trauma-informed, culturally safe practice – and, importantly, embeds cultural authority in the way we design and deliver workforce capability.
Between October 2024 and June 2025, the program trained 1,032 participants across Australia – from caseworkers and managers through to frontline practitioners working directly with families and communities.
AbSec Learning & Development Centre hosted 25 workshops across NSW and ACT and reaching 303 participants. The feedback speaks for itself, with 92 percent of participants reported sustained workplace change following their training.
That tells us something powerful – Project Waterways isn’t just training. It is system transformation in action.
“…I wanted to express how valuable I found both the content and its delivery. The material was clear, informative, and delivered with great sensitivity to the nature of the subject. [The trainer’s] presentation style was particularly engaging—his warmth and honesty, especially in sharing his own experiences, created a genuine and respectful atmosphere that made the two days both meaningful and memorable.”
For AbSec Learning & Development Centre, this project proved how impactful Aboriginal-led partnerships can be. Each partner organisation contributed knowledge, cultural authority and on-the-ground expertise from within their own jurisdictions. Local delivery ensured that content was meaningful, relevant and connected to community realities. National collaboration ensured scale and consistency.
Through AbSec LDC, we were able to take a national model and make it land here in NSW in a culturally grounded way – led by Aboriginal organisations, delivered by Aboriginal trainers, and centred on Aboriginal knowledges.
Because when workforce capability is developed with community – not done to community – real change sticks.
Project Waterways shows what’s possible when the sector invests in the right places: in community-led expertise, in evidence-based practice, and in learning that supports cultural safety as a non-negotiable. We’re proud to have played a key role in its success. And for us, this is only the beginning.
As demand for culturally informed capability continues to grow, AbSec LDC will keep building, partnering and delivering training that supports the workforce, strengthens practice, and ultimately, helps build a better future for Aboriginal children, young people and families.