Today marks the start of Foster Care and Kinship Week, a time to acknowledge and celebrate CareSouth’s wonderful carers and their invaluable contribution to improving the lives of children, young people and families.
Foster Care Week is an annual event, this year running from September 8-14, that celebrates and raises awareness of foster care. This year’s theme is ‘Today’s carers, Tomorrow’s future’ underscoring the crucial role carers play in shaping positive futures for children and young people in care.
There is a huge need for carers to open their homes for children and young people. In NSW 15,895, or 9 in every 100 children, were in foster care in 2021 (AIHW).
Regardless of the type of caring role our foster carers take on – emergency care, respite care, family preservation and restoration, long term foster care, kinship care, guardianship or adoption – they do it with love, respect and an unwavering commitment to making a difference. And that difference has a huge impact on the lives of children, young people and their families. Just ask Jane * who is now in her late twenties but entered foster care when she was a teenager.
Jane was placed with former CareSouth foster carers Bev and Brad for almost five years. She considers them family, her three-year-old son calls them Nan and Pop and the pair frequently pop in for a cup of tea and a cuddle.
“They’re my family, if it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be where I am and that’s something I can’t thank them enough for,” says Jane. “They are still my biggest supporters to this day. I know what I deserve because of them and they always tell me they’re proud of me.”
Jane is studying a Bachelor of Social Work, works part-time for the Department of Communities and Justice in their policy division, and is keen to “make the world a better place” through frontline practice and changing policies. She credits her carers, who she calls Nan and Pop, for supporting her to finish school and go to university. “I want kids to feel safe, secure and supported, in the same way my carers and caseworkers made me feel.”
But it wasn’t always smooth sailing. When Jane first came into care and arrived at their new carers’ house, she remembers saying, “I’m going to make their life hell. They’re not going to want me.
“We turned up and they were waiting out the front. I thought, ‘Oh, they’re old, I can’t give them a heart attack.’ Being in care, you’re always looking for an exit; you’re in survival mode and it’s very hard to come out of that. And it’s really terrifying walking into a stranger’s home not knowing what they’re like.”
She says it took her a very long time to let her guard down and begin to open up and trust her foster carers.
“It was so important to know that they had my back, no matter what,” says Jane. “There were times where I wanted to drop out of school, but they got me through it. They set me up for success.”
Seeing Jane thrive has been a highlight of Bev and Brad’s foster care journey. “She’s a very bright student, but she was so withdrawn when she came to us,” says Bev. “To see her come out of her shell and break down those barriers was so rewarding. Just watching her blossom at school! She ended up doing a university course; the first one in her entire family to go to university. We’re just so proud of her.”
With five kids and 18 grandkids between them, family holidays were a big part of Bev and Brad’s life. Then the grandkids grew up, but the couple had so much more time and love to give.
“When I retired and the grandkids got bigger we thought well, let’s give some other kids a chance,” says Brad. “And basically that was it. That was the reason we became foster carers.”
Jane could not be more grateful.
“Bev, Brad and their whole family showed me love and that’s really all I could ask for,” says Jane. “I will be forever grateful.”
CareSouth would like to give a big-hearted shout-out to all our amazing foster carers who open their hearts and homes in many different ways.
Caring for a child or young person can be a very rewarding journey; if you are loving, caring, kind and respectful to children and young people and have the time and space to care for them, you already have what it takes to be a foster carer.
Foster carers must also be willing to undergo training and background checks and have open conversations with CareSouth’s Carer Recruitment team so they can find the right match for carers and children.
If you’re interested in becoming a foster carer, we encourage you to contact CareSouth on 1300 554 260 or visit www.caresouth.org.au
*Name has been changed for privacy reasons
