Unemployment rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are three times as high as  non-Aboriginal people. The number of Aboriginal people not participating in the labour force is double non Aboriginal people. There are a variety of factors contributing to these shocking statistics including education,  training and skill levels, poorer health, limited market opportunities, discrimination and lower levels of job  retention. However, among all of those factors there is one basic truth. Aboriginal people often lack the basics we all need in order to go to work. 

The fact is we all need stability and guidance to succeed. If you don’t have stability and guidance, you can’t sit down and learn, rest, or prepare yourself for a day’s work. Without stability and guidance, it’s difficult to feel safe and secure in your community and hold down a job. We also know that if Aboriginal people don’t maintain their  link to their home community and culture they never settle and they never feel comfortable. This combination can  often leave them feeling isolated, overwhelmed, depressed and at risk. The Killara Partnership Program seeks to address these issues. 

Killara houses young Aboriginal employees in modern, secure homes and assigns an Indigenous Life Skills Coach to guide them in obtaining the skills they need to succeed. It’s an initiative with widespread Traditional Owner support from the likes of the Northern Land Council, Larrakia Nation and FORWAARD.

Aboriginal people can stay as long as required and, when they are ready, Killara will help them find their own  accommodation and assist them with references, setting up of utilities, and anything else they might need  to start a life of independence. 

They can return to a Killara home at any time and will always be recognised as part of the broader  Killara community. 

Killara Foundation assists Indigenous Australians into sustainable employment by providing the most  basic need for that to occur – adequate housing and guidance. We’ll help them adjust to life in the city and  maintain their connection to their community at home. In doing so, we believe that we will help prepare the next  generation of strong Aboriginal elders who can lead their communities into the 22nd Century.