AbSec

What AbSec does

AbSec – NSW Child, Family and Community Peak Aboriginal Corporation is the designated peak advocacy and support organization for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, young people, families, carers, and communities in New South Wales, headquartered in Redfern, Sydney, on the traditional lands of the Gadigal and Wangal people of the Eora Nation. Its work spans systemic policy advocacy, sector capacity building, and direct community-facing services, with a portfolio of named programs including the Leaving Care Hub, the AbSec Learning & Development Centre, the Deadly Practice program, the Know Your Rights initiative, the Aboriginal Case Management Policy, the Family is Culture reform agenda, and the Aboriginal Guardianship Support Model. The organization also convenes major sector events such as the annual NSW Aboriginal Child and Family Conference (300+ attendees, 70+ sessions) and the NAIDOC Family Fun Day (2,000+ attendees), and runs quarterly sector forums and targeted webinars for the community services workforce.

AbSec does not operate a technology product; its core work is human-led advocacy, member and community engagement, training delivery, and policy development. It engages in formal partnerships with Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs), the NSW Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ), sector NGOs, peer peaks in other states (QATSICPP, VACCA, Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre), the National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA), the Long Service Leave Corporation, the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT), and the Justice and Equity Centre, and makes structured referrals to regulatory bodies including the NSW Ombudsman, Office of the Children's Guardian, the Australian Human Rights Commission, and the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.

Revenue is generated through tax-deductible donations from individuals and organizations (donations of $2+ are tax deductible; monthly recurring donations are accepted) and government funding, with services delivered free of charge to beneficiaries. The organization is privately held as a Peak Aboriginal Corporation under NSW jurisdiction, with a leadership team including CEO John Leha, Director of Sector Engagement Sherry-Ann Toomey, Manager Communications & Memberships Kristjan Porm, and Event Coordinator Celeste Ambalong.

Name

AbSec

Legal name

AbSec – NSW Child, Family and Community Peak Aboriginal Corporation

Website

https://absec.org.au

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

AbSec is the NSW peak advocacy and support body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, young people, families, carers, and communities, delivering policy advocacy, sector capacity building, direct support programs, and flagship convening events, funded by donations and government grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Redfern

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and fundraising: AbSec receives donations from individuals and organizations to support Aboriginal children, young people, families, and communities across NSW. Donations of $2 and over are tax deductible. Monthly recurring donations are also accepted.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

AbSec is the NSW peak body for Aboriginal children, families, and communities, providing advocacy, direct support, sector capacity building, and policy reform. It delivers programs such as the Leaving Care Hub, Learning & Development Centre, Deadly Practice, Strong Families Our Way, and the ACCO Comprehensive Support Package, and runs the annual NSW Aboriginal Child and Family Conference. Services are provided free of charge and funded through donations and government support.

Product overview

AbSec – NSW Child, Family and Community Peak Aboriginal Corporation is a non-profit community organization, not a technology company. AbSec offers advocacy services, community support programs, and sector development initiatives for Aboriginal children, young people and families in New South Wales. The organization provides programs including the Leaving Care Hub, Learning & Development Centre, Deadly Practice program, Know Your Rights initiative, and organizes the annual NSW Aboriginal Child and Family Conference. AbSec does not offer commercial technology products or SaaS platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Leaving Care Hub

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 6,350 Aboriginal children in NSW are in out-of-home care; AbSec advocates to reduce this number through prevention, early intervention, and ACCO-led service delivery.
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAbSec works with ACCOs as core strategic partners to deliver culturally safe, Aboriginal-led prevention, early intervention, and reunification services. This is central to AbSec's mission of Aboriginal community-led governance and self-determination in child and family welfare.
• NSW Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAbSec engages with DCJ as the key government partner responsible for child protection in NSW, advocating for systemic reform, accountability mechanisms, and genuine partnership in Closing the Gap efforts targeting the over-representation of Aboriginal children in out-of-home care.
• Non-government organisations (NGOs) in the sectorcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAbSec partners with NGOs across the child and family services sector to enhance capacity and capability of ACCOs, deliver training, and drive collective advocacy for systemic change.
• Justice and Equity CentreminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAbSec works with the Justice and Equity Centre and other organizations to advocate for raising the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to at least 16, addressing the severe long-term impacts of incarceration on Aboriginal children.
• Aboriginal Legal Service (ALS)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAbSec partners with the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) in advocating for raising the age of criminal responsibility, noting that the continued criminalisation of Aboriginal children directly undermines progress on Closing the Gap.
• Long Service Leave CorporationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAbSec partners with the Long Service Leave Corporation to deliver an online briefing about the Portable Long Service Leave Scheme designed for the community services sector.
• National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerNIAA provides funding for AbSec activities including National NAIDOC Week events, as acknowledged in AbSec's event and media communications.
• NSW OmbudsmanminorOthersAbSec refers complaints about NSW government departments and community service providers to the NSW Ombudsman. In cases involving child welfare concerns, AbSec may disclose information to the NSW Ombudsman.
• Office of the Children's GuardianminorOthersAbSec refers complaints about child safety, Working With Children Checks, and out-of-home care agency accreditation to the Office of the Children's Guardian.
• Human Rights CommissionminorOthersAbSec refers complaints about discrimination, human rights, or racial vilification to the Australian Human Rights Commission.
• NDIS Quality and Safeguards CommissionminorOthersAbSec refers complaints about NDIS-delivered services to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.
• Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Protection Peak (QATSICPP)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerQATSICPP is a key peer peak body. AbSec collaborates with QATSICPP and other state peaks (VACCA, Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre) on cross-jurisdictional learning about delegated authority models and Aboriginal-led commissioning.
• Victorian Aboriginal Child and Community Agency (VACCA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVACCA is a key peer peak body. AbSec collaborates with VACCA, QATSICPP, and the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre on panels and forums sharing critical lessons from delegated authority models across Australian jurisdictions.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Life Without Barriers: Large national NGO delivering OOHC, disability, and youth services. Comparable as a major service provider in the same child welfare and family support space AbSec advocates to reform.
• Families Australia: National peak for the broader family services sector. Compares as a peak-body model serving families but with broader (non-Indigenous-specific) scope, providing a wider-sector benchmark for advocacy and convening.
• MacKillop Family Services: Major Catholic agency providing OOHC, foster care, and family services across multiple states. Comparable as a direct service provider in the same child welfare space AbSec advocates on, but at greater operational scale.
• Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare: Victorian peak for child and family services. Comparable peak-body model covering child welfare policy and sector capacity building, but with broader (non-Indigenous-specific) membership base.

Emerging players

• Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT): NSW/ACT Aboriginal legal advocacy organisation. Comparable as an Aboriginal community-controlled advocacy body with shared interests (raising the age of criminal responsibility) and overlapping constituency, but focused on legal rather than child welfare outcomes.

Direct peers

• SNAICC – National Voice for our Children: National peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. Directly comparable as the federally-focused counterpart to AbSec's NSW state peak role, addressing the same child welfare, OOHC, and Closing the Gap issues.
• CREATE Foundation: National peak advocating for children and young people with OOHC experience. Comparable as an advocacy peak with a children-in-care focus, including the Leaving Care transition space where AbSec operates its Leaving Care Hub.
• Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Protection Peak (QATSICPP): Queensland state peak for Aboriginal child protection. Direct state-level peer with identical peak-body structure, advocacy mandate, and Aboriginal-led commissioning focus; named collaborator of AbSec.
• Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre: Tasmanian Aboriginal community-controlled organisation covering child and family welfare. Comparable in peak-body function and Aboriginal-led governance, named as a cross-jurisdictional peer to AbSec.
• Victorian Aboriginal Child and Community Agency (VACCA): Victorian Aboriginal peak agency for children and families. A state-level peer with comparable advocacy, ACCO support, and delegated authority reform work; explicitly collaborates with AbSec on cross-jurisdictional learning.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/absecnsw

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about AbSec