Over the last 50+ years, the Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (ACCO) sector has developed an operating and service model which affirm Aboriginal ways of knowing, being and doing. This resource uses graphic and visual means to share the structure, operation and strengths of the model and draw attention to funding challenges.

ACCOs are independent legal entities owned and governed by the local Aboriginal community. Each ACCO’s constitution outlines its purpose, rules, and governance structure. There are 33 Victorian ACCO members offering an array of services and activities connected by their holistic model. Each member self-determines their service mix.

The Victorian ACCO model is:

• holistic, integrated, strengths-based, trauma-informed and culturally safe
• agile and highly scalable
• designed to address the many disparities in health and wellbeing still experienced by Aboriginal Victorians
• founded on the principle of health as the physical, social, emotional, and cultural wellbeing of individuals, families and communities
• recognised and endorsed by government policy at all levels
• significantly challenged by the fragmenting influence of funding designed for mainstream services.

The Victorian and Commonwealth governments have committed to supporting the holistic and integrated ACCO model, but funding remains fragmented and disintegrated. Despite long-standing government commitments to simplify funding,
including through outcomes-based funding models, progress has been slow. The authors note that ACCOs will need adequate resources to transition their reporting models.