Commissioner Sue-Anne Hunter

National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People

Sue-Anne Hunter is a Wurundjeri and Ngurai Illum Wurrung woman and the inaugural National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People. 

In her first year as national commissioner, Sue-Anne was instrumental in the passing of legislation through the Australian Parliament for the National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People to be enshrined with the powers to drive systemic change to protect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people, in effect from 1 July 2026.
As a practised and qualified social worker, Sue-Anne is a recognised leader in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child and family services sector working tirelessly to champion the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, young people and families at a national and international level.

Recently, Sue-Anne held the role of Deputy Chair and Commissioner in Victoria’s Yoorrook Justice Commission from 2021 to 2025 – Australia's first formal truth-telling inquiry into historic and ongoing systemic injustices perpetrated against First Peoples through colonisation. 

With over a decade working for Victorian Aboriginal Child and Community Agency (VACCA), Sue-Anne advocated for reform in child protection policies helping to transform Aboriginal guardianship laws in Victoria and develop a new model of child protection practices premised on Aboriginal organisations working in partnership with Aboriginal families. 

She has worked for national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled peak body, SNAICC – National Voice for our Children as Sector Development Manager and held the position of Co-Chair for the Family Matters campaign to eliminate the overrepresentation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care. 

As Adjunct Professor of Global Engagement at Federation University, Sue-Anne holds a Master of Social Work, and is currently undergoing her PhD at Monash University with a focus on cultural safety in education. Sue-Anne’s work is widely recognised for developing rights-based, transformative practice responses that empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to heal from the continuing effects and processes of colonisation.