Company Profile

Company Description:

Aboriginal families and communities in New South Wales have been profoundly affected by separation and we are struggling to find our way home, home to family, country, community and home to our Aboriginal identities, home to where we belong.

The separation of Aboriginal children from their families and communities began in NSW as soon as Europeans set foot on our land. In 1788, an Aboriginal boy named Andrew was found in the bush and taken to live with the British colonists (Fletcher 1989).

NSW was the first State to be colonised by Europeans, and the laws, policies and practices of separation were developed and perfected here. Officials had the power to remove any child under any pretext, for not even a court hearing was necessary.

The belief that it is in the best interest of Aboriginal children to be removed from their culture and assimilated justified the systematic disruption of Aboriginal families and has been allowed to prevail.

Separation is not past history - it continues today and the serious and ongoing trauma on Aboriginal people goes unrecognised.

Link-Up (NSW) Aboriginal Corporation was founded around 1980 to assist all Aboriginal people who have been fostered, adopted or raised in institutions to find their way home.

We also assist the children and youth of today who are or have been in jeopardy of being removed from their family.

Our website provides information for people who wish to become clients and also those who would like to trace their family tree (see Mapping Your Journey).

If you have been affected by policies of removal, please feel free to contact us at anytime for a confidential discussion.

Since Link-Up NSW began it has had a massive growth in the past number of years to try and give a more holistic approach to supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults, children and young people as best as we can.

Our philosophy is to empower our clients to take charge of their own experience throughout life.

The services we provide include:

• Reunification
• ​Hidden Carers Program
• Family Link Program
• Community Builders
• Royal Commission Counsellor

Our workers walk side-by-side with clients and support them at every step along the way.