Wodonga's Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency officially opened

Muriel Bamblett was speaking at the official opening of the Wodonga Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency office on the corner of Birallee Palce and Melrose Drive on Wednesday morning.

Ms Bamblett said the ACAC reunification rates were 22 per cent compared to 12 - 15 per cent at the Victorian Department of Families.

"Most of our children were being raised by non-Aboriginal organisations, often run by non-Aboriginal people and they weren't experiencing their Aboriginal culture growing up," she said.

IN OTHER NEWS:

"We found that many of them were presenting to juvenile justice because they had no history of who they were."

VACCA is a state-wide Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation that provides children, family and cultural services.

In the North East 27 per cent of children in out of home care are Aboriginal.

Ms Bamblett said VACCA had been operating in the Hume region since 2018 and in that time staff numbers had grown from four to 64.

"We've constantly looked at the Hume numbers, but I think we've always just assumed it was Shepparton where those numbers were," she said.

"What we did not know is in this area, how big the Wodonga and Wangaratta and all the areas around here, how much of a need there is.

"You can see the programs are actually over extended right now and it's just the sheer growth when you look at those numbers, there must have been a huge unmet need."

The service is open for walk ins Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm and can provide emergency food, utility and other relief to any Aboriginal person.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: