Indigenous businesses opening space to rethink success in custody
Professor Kerry Arabena
Managing Director
What we measure matters
Custodial health reform is as much about deciding what counts as success, and how to measure it, as it is about designing programs. Counting incidents, disciplinary actions, or program completions gives only part of the story. It doesn’t show whether Aboriginal people in custody feel culturally safe, maintain family connection, or return to community with stronger chances of reintegration.
For too long, correctional systems have decided these measures on their own. The results have reflected bureaucratic efficiency rather than Aboriginal wellbeing.
Putting data in Aboriginal hands
Indigenous data sovereignty changes the ground rules. It puts Aboriginal communities in charge of what counts as evidence, who controls it, and how it is used. In custodial health, this principle makes sure that indicators reflect cultural connection, healing, and responsibility instead of being reduced to technical outputs.
During the custodial health reform project, Karabena Consulting drafted indicators as working documents. These drafts were deliberately left unfinished so Aboriginal organisations, corrections staff, and people with lived experience could debate and refine them. The goal was to hold open a space where Aboriginal authority determined the terms of success.
What counts as success
Some of the proposed indicators were simple, others pushed the boundaries:
Whether Aboriginal prisoners felt safe to identify as Aboriginal in custody
Whether cultural programs were embedded as routine practice rather than treated as add-ons
Whether families experienced stronger connection during and after incarceration
Whether people leaving prison had access to continuity of care, housing, and cultural supports
Whether Aboriginal staff and Elders were visible, respected, and resourced inside prisons
Each of these indicators reflects Aboriginal priorities: safety in identity, strength in culture, and stability for families. Together, they offer a clearer picture of whether reform is shifting prison environments from despair towards healing.
The role of Indigenous businesses
Karabena Consulting’s role was to bring both agility and cultural legitimacy to the process. Government reform “sprints” often demand quick outputs. Meeting those deadlines while ensuring Aboriginal authority stays central takes a particular kind of positioning, something Indigenous businesses can provide.
The draft indicators acted as scaffolds: documents institutions could start working with while Aboriginal organisations reshaped and owned the detail.
Rethinking success as a political act
Redefining success in custodial health is political. Indigenous data sovereignty ensures Aboriginal voices set the terms, so that indicators reflect culture, family, and community rather than compliance alone. Indigenous businesses like Karabena Consulting play a crucial role in this shift, drafting tools that institutions can use while Aboriginal authority remains in control of outcomes.