Remote Laundries Evaluation

Partners: Aboriginal Investment Group (AIG), CSIRO Manufacturing

Pictured: Kristin Sarra, Ray Mahoney and Tiana Thorne at an AIG Laundry in Barunga, Northern Territory


In the Northern Territory, overcrowding and a lack of washing facilities have been identified as facilitating the spread of environmentally facilitated infections. This includes Group A Strep (GAS) which if left untreated can lead to Acute Rheumatic Fever (ARF) and eventually Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD).

In 2019 the Aboriginal Investment Group (AIG) launched the Remote Laundries Project as a means of protecting communities against a raft of infections and diseases. These laundries are permanent, free facilities for communities to use and employ local community members to run them.

CSIRO is utilising the Social Impact Framework (previously funded by The Heart Foundation) to conduct a mixed-methods evaluation of the Remote Laundries Project. This aims to build evidence of the Remote Laundries’ impact on the social, cultural, economical, and physical health outcomes of communities where these facilities are implemented. This includes assessing the impact of the Remote Laundries on reducing the spread of GAS and subsequently on preventing RHD.

Pictured: The Social Impact Framework (2023)

Read more information about AIG’s Remote Laundry Project here.

Read more information about the Social Impact Framework here.

For more information about this project, please contact:

Professor Ray Mahoney

Indigenous Science Research Director