Respected Aboriginal leader and native title pioneer Parry Agius has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of Aboriginal Community Services, South Australia’s largest Aboriginal aged care provider.
Mr Agius will begin in the role on Tuesday June 16, bringing more than 30 years of experience across community development, cultural engagement, rights advocacy and leadership.
Aboriginal Community Services, known as ACS, was founded more than 30 years ago by First Nations men and women who were concerned about the lack of support available for Elders in Adelaide’s northern suburbs. Today, the not-for-profit organisation employs more than 90 staff and provides home care and 24/7 residential aged care to more than 400 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders across metropolitan Adelaide and regional South Australia.
ACS Board Chairperson Judith Lovegrove said Mr Agius was appointed following an extensive national recruitment process.
“Mr Agius is a highly respected Aboriginal leader with an extensive track record of working across community organisations, government and industry to deliver positive outcomes for Aboriginal people,” Ms Lovegrove said.
“His cultural connections, executive leadership experience and deep commitment to supporting Aboriginal communities will be a significant asset as we continue to meet the growing needs of our ageing Elders,” she said.
Born in Maitland on Yorke Peninsula, Mr Agius is a proud Kaurna, Narungga, Ngarrindjeri, Ngadjuri, Adnyamathanha and Wirangu man.
He has played a major role in the development of native title policy and the advancement of Aboriginal land rights in South Australia, including through his work as Manager of the Native Title Unit at the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement from 1995 to 2008. He also helped establish and lead South Australian Native Title Services from 2008 to 2012.
In 2021, Mr Agius founded Linking Futures, an advisory practice working with government, corporate and not-for-profit sectors to develop engagement strategies informed by Aboriginal traditional knowledge, Elders, family and community.
He has also facilitated more than 600 cultural and systems-thinking workshops in recent years for organisations including SA Water, SA Health and SA Ambulance Service.
“Our Elders are at the centre of everything we do,” Mr Agius said.
“I am honoured and excited to join ACS and work alongside staff, Elders, families and communities to ensure Elders receive the culturally safe care and support they deserve,” he said.
“Together, we will continue to strengthen services, create opportunities and advocate for our people to thrive right up to the end of their journey when they return to their ancestors.”
Mr Agius is a board member of the Aboriginal Health Council of South Australia, the RAA First Nations Advisory Board, the South Adelaide Local Health Network and the Moorundi Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service. His previous honours include the Prime Minister’s Centenary Medal in 2000, a Churchill Fellowship in 2004 and being named an Honorary Associate of Macquarie University in 2013.
He takes over from outgoing CEO Graham Aitken, who will retire later this month after 16 years leading ACS.
Ms Lovegrove thanked Mr Aitken for his contribution to the organisation and its work supporting Elders across the state.
“On behalf of the Board, I thank Mr Aitken for his outstanding contribution to growing ACS’s impact and strengthening culturally safe aged care services for Elders across South Australia,” Ms Lovegrove said.
ACS operates Adelaide’s only Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander residential aged care facility, the Aboriginal Elders Village in Davoren Park, alongside its broader home care services across South Australia.
