Resources for Aboriginal peoples

Who are we

CCNSW is a NSW Government agency that:

• supports and regulates the interment industry (cemeteries and crematoria) in NSW
• provides information on burial and cremation options to the public.

What we do

We make sure cemeteries are respectfully managed, and licence them through the Interment Industry Scheme. This aims to benefit Aboriginal communities by:

• Requiring cemetery operators to take reasonable steps to comply with Aboriginal cultural and spiritual principles, which include:
  • informing themselves of local Aboriginal communities and common requirements
  • asking each individual if they have any Aboriginal cultural or spiritual requirements, and meeting those requirements where they possibly can (at a transparent cost).
  • For those operators who commonly provide Aboriginal burials or cremations, a requirement to engage with the relevant Aboriginal communities to understand their specific needs and work in good faith towards meeting them.
• more clearly and transparently explaining the costs of burial, ash interment and cremation, including all fees and charges
• emphasising the importance of proper, and culturally safe, customer service and treating people with respect.

We provide targeted information for mob, including:

• the types of burials available, including options without conventional coffins or caskets
• knowing where to go if you are unhappy with the cemetery or crematorium operator
• understanding how to set up an Aboriginal cemetery.

We provide information for cemetery operators:

• guidelines for cemeteries and crematoria on Aboriginal cultural and spiritual requirements.

What about funeral directors and funeral insurance?

CCNSW only regulates cemeteries and crematoria. We don’t regulate funeral directors or funeral insurance. If funeral directors are selling cemetery products (burials or ash interments) or cremations, they need to comply with some of the cemetery licence conditions such as using a consumer contract and transparently explaining prices. Funeral directors are regulated by NSW Fair Trading and NSW Health. Funeral insurance funds are regulated by Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority (APRA) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

Resources for Aboriginal peoples

Aboriginal engagement

Cemeteries & Crematoria NSW (CCNSW) engages with Aboriginal people to understand what resources would be useful for them, and, as a result, has published a range of relevant resources – see the list below.

We engaged with several NSW communities to develop guidelines on the most common Aboriginal cultural and spiritual requirements for burial and cremation, to support operators to better understand the needs of Aboriginal peoples.