CWAATSICH – Community Newsletter

The Pathfinders National Aboriginal Birth Certificate Program

The Pathfinders National Aboriginal Birth Certificate Program

Pathfinders is a not for profit organisation funded by the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet to provide free birth certificates for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged between 0 and 21.

About 1/3 of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children born in Australia each year (6,000) do not register their births or obtain birth certificates in their first year of life. This makes them particularly vulnerable to missing out later in life.  Pathfinders want every Australian to have a birth certificate, and to make our nation a fairer place. They want everyone to develop a legal and personal identity, to be full citizens, to contribute to society, and get the most out of life. They are also asking governments to make birth certificates free and automatic at birth, so future generations of Australians will not have to fill out paperwork and pay for this basic right of citizenship.

If your school or community organisation would like to access support to assist families obtain birth certificates for their children at no charge, please see attached information.

A brief explanation of the process is as follows:

1. Applicant (parent) must provide 3 forms of Identification with a Medicare card being one of the preferred forms as it shows the link between applicant and child
2. Complete the attached NABC sign-up day checklist
3. Complete the birth certificate application form for the State the child was born in (make sure the parent/guardian signs it)
4. Scan (colour preferred) and email back to Hilton Naden for processing.

Please note: You do not need to wait for a sign-up day event to access this support.  Just follow the brief explanation above and you can’t go wrong.  But if in doubt contact Hilton.

• If a parent would like their child’s birth certificate to be received at the school or community organisation, the parent/guardian will need to complete the NABC Authority form and submit with the completed applications and JP signed ID.

o   When certificates are generated from Births Deaths and Marriages they will be sent to the contact officer on the authority form.  This will give schools/community organisations time to get certified  copies to be kept of the students file for when they transition to another school etc. before handing original to the parent.

• There is no limit to the number of birth certificates required.  E.G. if a family has four (4) children and they all need a birth certificate, then the parent would complete four (4)4 birth certificate application forms
• If a child is not registered, please contact Hilton Naden who will be able to provide more information to support registration.

CONTACT DETAILS: