Our Cultural Support Officers are Torres Strait Islanders and they will receive all enquiries made to the Program Support Office. They are your first point of contact.
All conversations with our Cultural Support Officers are private and confidential. We respect your wishes, provide referrals to legal advice when required and share resources.
We are the protectors of the cultural practice, we do not determine the appropriateness of the arrangements made between the birth parents and the Cultural Parents.
Our Cultural Support Officers receive all enquiries made to the Program Support Office, providing immediate advice, referrals and support for Torres Strait Islander families. Through strategic planning, they also coordinate key community visits across Queensland to deliver engagement events and informational sessions, in conjunction with key partner agencies.
Our Cultural Support Officers will support applicants in preparing, completing and submitting their Cultural Recognition Application, advising the Commissioner on matters pertaining to the applicant. This may include supporting applicants through legal dispensation matters, providing cultural support at scheduled court hearings and liaising with key service providers to help applicants source requested information.
Our community-based service model is delivered in collaboration with Legal Aid Queensland, Births, Deaths and Marriages, and the Queensland Indigenous Family Violence Legal Service. This collaborative, nonpartisan model has significantly enhanced and broadened Torres Strait Islanders’ access to crucial services, including the ability to apply for a Cultural Recognition Order.
The Office of the Commissioner (Meriba Omasker Kaziw Kazipa) provides support to Torres Strait people and families who want to apply for the Cultural Recognition Order.
We independently assess and determine applications for Cultural Recognition Orders, ensuring the efficient and effective operation of the Office. It also involves providing expert advice and recommendations to the Minister regarding the Act, raising public awareness of the Commissioner’s and Office’s roles and responsibilities, and formally informing the Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages of all approved Cultural Recognition Orders.
Our vision is to lead the way in recognising and honouring Torres Strait Islander traditional child rearing practices, building a culturally competent service that embraces cultural diversity, and continually enhancing and improving established processes.
We envision a future where all Torres Strait Islander families feel valued and empowered to raise their children in a way that reflects their cultural identity, where our Office is recognised as a model of excellence in cultural competency, and where we are relentlessly committed to continuous improvement, innovation, and learning to better serve our community.
Through our work, we seek to support and celebrate the unique strengths and resilience of Torres Strait Islander families while advancing equity, social justice, and positive outcomes for all we serve.
A Cultural Recognition Order is a legal document that transfers a child’s parentage from their birth parents to their cultural parents; legally recognising a child’s cultural parents in Queensland law.