Today marks the sixteenth annual Close the Gap Day – a campaign that works towards closing the gap in health and life expectancy outcomes between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians within a generation.

As a Noongar owned and operated business and the only Indigenous safety wholesaler in Australia, Close the Gap Day marks an important week on the Cole Supplies calendar.

The aim of Close the Gap Day is to bring people together to share information, and most importantly, to take meaningful action in support of achieving Indigenous health equality by 2030.

The Facts

• The life expectancy for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is approximately 10 years lower than for the rest of the Australian population?
• One in three deaths among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 to 35 is due to suicide – twice the rate of other Australians.

Our rich heritage is ingrained in everything we do

From providing a positive customer experience, to enriching and supporting our local communities through our business practices – Cole Supplies are proud supporters of many local community groups and work tirelessly to support Indigenous Australians in a variety of cultural activities.

Supporting Indigenous Australians

At Cole Supplies, one of our core values is ‘making a positive impact on local and Indigenous communities’. We support the Noongar Wellbeing & Sports (NWS) by giving back a percentage of our profits to the NWS. The NWS aims to develop partnerships that maximise opportunities for Indigenous Australians residing in Noongar country, including increased participation in sport and recreational activities in order to have positive health, education, social and cultural benefits for individuals and their respective communities.

We also support the Young Aboriginal Girls program which involves young Aboriginal girls and their carers living in the Mirrabooka area of Perth, WA and aims to improve parenting engagement, self-efficacy and wellbeing and cultural respect and pride.

Moving forward together

The Closing the Gap strategy has made some improvements to Indigenous health since it was introduced in 2008, however, national statistics indicate there’s still a long way to go.