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The field of evidence based, or emerging evidence approaches to support children and young people to heal from trauma is a growing field and definitely hopeful. What we do know is that healing does begin in the home and with the relationships around a child. To care for a child that has come into care due to neglect/abuse ideally means you are a willing to take a peek around the world of trauma and healing from trauma. Below is a snapshot of two key areas to consider when you

Once you have decided you would like to be a foster carer, your next critical decision is choosing an agency to be a foster carer with. This decision really will set up your foster care journey. A recent national survey showed that the key area carers wanted improvement was linked to the quality of support provided by their foster care agency and team that supported them. You actually have plenty of choice when it comes to picking a foster care agency. When you start enquirin

As a foster, relative/kin carer it is good to accept quite early that it is highly likely that you will have numerous caseworkers (and managers) in your journey as a carer. In the 13 years I have been a carer we have had relatively little churn – 9 caseworkers (across 2 agencies). Anyone that is already a carer will know that the skills and attitude of caseworkers can vary and at times you will find your role is definitely in the ‘advocacy’ space to ensure the needs of the ch

It is incredibly sad to reflect on the statistics for Aboriginal children in out-of-home-care in Australia. Whilst Aboriginal children represent approximately 5% of the overall population of children, they make up nearly 40% of all children in care. The reasons for the over-representation are linked to generations of disadvantage, discrimination in policy, attitudes and sector practice. How to reduce these numbers would be much better earlier intervention for at-risk families

When I made a decision to become a foster carer, I wasn’t really thinking about hope. I believed that I would be able to support a child in foster care and like other areas of my life, work things out as I go along. In some (ok many) ways, I was idealistic (or naïve) about what this all meant. C, my gorgeous foster daughter ( and her mum and dads gorgeous daughter) arrived into our family home and proceeded to show us her very narrow emotional range. C didn’t really smile l

Hi and welcome ! If you are considering becoming a foster carer, embarking on becoming a relative carer or foster carer or already a foster carer then this blog is designed for you. I am a foster carer in Australia and have been caring for 12 years. I will not be referring to my foster daughter by name – this is both out of respect and for privacy reasons. For the purpose of this blog, she will be C. C is a loving, caring, fun, active nearly 15 year old I also have a 16 year