Looking beyond Indigenous service delivery: The societal purpose of urban First Nations organisations

Abstract

The paper analyses the quantitative findings of a three-year mixed-method research project developed in partnership with six urban First Nations organisations in the Australian state of New South Wales. The research is designed to engage with Closing the Gap 2020, and past policy, in relation to the positioning of First Nations organisations in relation to the delivery of government services to First Nations people. As part of this research, a survey was developed based on the observations, questions, and concerns of our partner First Nations organisations and wider First Nations Discussion Circles. This paper speaks back to a longstanding policy position about the role and function of First Nations organisations in the Indigenous service market, which discursively positions First Nations organisations as service providers, by using the findings of the survey that identify an alternative Indigenous perspective about the distinctive role of urban First Nations organisations in society.