This is the most thorough answers I have EVER heard. Here in Melbourne the Foster Care process sounds exactly the same but it was always difficult to find families to talk about it like you just did. So thank you 😊
Thank you for this it it near impossible finding Australian families discuss their experience in the foster care system. We are thinking about becoming foster carers and this is so helpful.
Thank you. So hard to find info and videos on Australian fostering system. I'm looking at becoming a foster carer in the future. I've heard there are some strange rules like you can't cut their hair, they can't go on school camps, can't go to sleep overs and you can't have someone like your adult child or your parents come stay over for a visit. Is this true and what other weird rules are there, that people might not be aware of?
Great questions. Yes there are some things that you will need to have permission to do, foster care is generally temporary care and they will be returning to their parents at some stage. DCP are still responsible for the children, their legal guardians, so anything that a guardian is required to sign off on DCP will need to do it - things like school permission slips, medical visits etc. They can go DCP just need to sign off on it which is understandable as they are legally their guardians not you as their foster carer. DCP need to be aware of the adults that are in your home not only to keep the children safe but to safe guard the adults as well. If you have regular babysitters or people staying over then DCP will need to evaluate those adults as well. They will need to have police clearance and fill in some paper work and be interviewed by DCP too. All these rules seem silly at first but when you get into the system and see and hear about the different situations you can understand why these rules are in place. It is to keep everybody safe and protected, both the children and the families who are caring for them.
Very helpful video! thanks a lot. I've just started the process to becoming a respite carer (and if all goes well will progress into longer term care). It is something that has been on my heart for a long time but I'm still nervous and wondering when/ if I will feel truly prepared and what else I can do to help myself feel more prepared.
I am glad that you found the video helpful. Sometimes we cannot be fully prepared for these things and we just have to jump in and learn on our feet as we go. All you can do is get your home ready and prepare your heart for taking care of children who need a lot of love. Another thing you can do is prepare the people who are in your life that will be your support network. Share with them the journey you are on and if they would like to help you could ask them to help you with meals when a new child comes into your home, they could help provide items you may need or go to the supermarket for you when you can not go. They can provide encouragement and moral support too. Good luck on your Foster Care journey❤️
No sorry I don't know of any support groups. There is a Foster Care Association that you can sign up to, they may have information about support groups or often the different district officers will know about groups
This was really helpful. I am single and interested in doing emergency or respite foster care to begin with. I am curious about the home inspection that they come and do, as you said that the process took 9 months. Is that 9 months after the home inspection? The reason I ask is that as a renter in the current Sydney market I have had to move at short notice before, so what if you move would you have to start again? Also, I would need to rent a more expensive home to accomodate an extra room, so 9 months is quite a long time to pay higher rent if no child is staying during that time. Also what if after that 9 months they said no & didn’t accept you, or did you have reassurance earlier on that you would be accepted?
The amount of time that it takes to get registered varies and there are no guarantees while you are going through the registration process that you are going to be approved. If you move house they just come and give it a quick inspection you don’t have to re register. They may ask you to make some changes and they will come back and look again. Once you start the process you can ask them all the questions you have and then you can decide if you would like to move forward with registering to be a foster caregiver or not. Good luck on your journey 😊🤞🏻
@@Mariekalake Thanks so much for the reply and this info. Worries about renting are the only thing causing me to stall. I will definitely find out more. Thank you so much!
Hi Marieka, our family is currently awaiting licensing after completing the training and assessment process in NSW with DCJ. Thanks so much for your informative vlog. I'd love to find more positive Aussie social networks to join as we embark on this journey. Can you recommend any other groups/individuals you think would be helpful to join and follow?
Good luck on your Foster Care journey. I have not found any groups to follow myself so unfortunately I can not recommend anything to you. When we first started out we belonged to the Foster Care Association here in WA. I do not deal with the Foster system anymore as we are now legal guardians so I have not needed to connect in anywhere
So if your a foster career you may or may not have parental rights , parents can voltnarly tell the courts they don't want there parental rights , or they can be taken in extreme cases until that happens appdotion I sent possible, in the beginning when kids are taken they are given a plan and actions and things they need do to bring there kids home , while this is happening they are in a safe place to stay (hopefully) while it's been sorted out but in some cases parent's are don't follow what they are ment to do and that can prolong but a kid can be in care for years but until there is an agreement from courts it's a , (long process most of the time and diet with only by case workers and foster cares have no involvement in these matters whatsoever ) then no appdotion and it's mostly out of foster cares hands until they are given the green light to adoption can take place you also need to be registered for adoption ,
Every child and every case is different. As a carer you can say that I am interested in only taking a long term child and say no to any short term placements then the depart should only place children with you who they know will not be returning to their parents.
Great video. Im signing up to foster care with Life without Barriers. I have 2 biological daughters 11 and 14 and also homeschool. I would love to know if I can homeschool them whilst in my care?
Big mistake we nearly lost our Biological Daughter because of a teenager who abandoned us in the ten years we have seen it all stuff you are never told.
Farmer2492 could you elaborate more on that? Do you think fostering is a bad idea if you have biological children as well? Or just homeschooling? I’m thinking about fostering and I would just love to hear your opinion if.
@@pillowheaven975 Put it this way 10 thousand dollars later in lawyer fees, and nearly losing our child but you are never told that in training .you only hear the good bits, if a foster child takes off and makes lies about you The DHS will come after you like they did us the foster child even admitted she made it all up. but the dhs still believe her, my answer is no dont do it if you do have a good lawyer on hand.and remember not many lawyers will take on the dhs. as we found out, all the foster care Australia people need to do is tell the truth in training.
Thank you for your Taking! It’s very nice! Please can you become a Foster care if you are vegan or vegetarian? All so about visa if you in temporary residence , can I do a application for foster care? Or can be volunteering Etc.... Thank you. Kind regards. Dilma.
The way that your family eats should have no effect on becoming a foster carer. i would think that you would need permanent residence if you are taking in long term children in to care. the department will want to make sure that you can provide long term care for the children and not have to move then to another home if your plans change. They may allow you to do temporary care of respite care though, but you can go along to an information evening with the department and ask them those questions
I did not go through an agency, I went straight with the department and all my friends and family have gone straight with the department as well so I can not speak into what agencies are like as I just do not know sorry. But going straight with the department was great, it felt like it was a bit quicker to do that then go with an agency. We signed up to the Foster Care Association and they will act on your behalf with the department if you have any troubles. They also provide lots of great advice and assistance if you need it too. Good luck with you foster care journey.
Can we choose age/gender of children. I know that sounds perculiar, but I'd love to be long term carer. I'd love to be the dad to take his son to footy games and go fishing. That sounds really old lol, I'm 26, a teacher and really considering this.
They will present cases to you and you can say yes or no. For our family we needed to take in children who were younger then our own children so our "yes" was for children one and under. There is always a great need for careers so they will always present cases to you that may be outside of your "yes" but you do have the choice to say yes or no
Short term foster care is where you are caring for children who will be reunited with their family. You take them into your care full time and you look after them, taking them to school and any appointments that they need to attend etc. They will continue to have scheduled visits with their parents. Those visits are supervised but you will not be apart of them. You are taking care of them on behave of children's services so they will tell you what needs to happen with the child. Eventually over time they will leave your care and go back to their family or if they have not been able to reunite with their family then they will find a permanent home for them. Short term care can be rewarding, being apart of helping a family to get back on their feet and being reunited once again but it is also difficult when you bond with a child and they have to leave your family.
Yes you can. You need approval to travel interstate or overseas and if the parents are still holding guardianship then they have to agree but if the Department is the guardian then they approve or not.
You can travel you just need to seek permission from the department. If the parents are involved then they may need to approve as well. It all depend on the circumstances, every child and every case is different. Once you have guardianship you will receive official court documents stating that you are their guardian
This is the most thorough answers I have EVER heard. Here in Melbourne the Foster Care process sounds exactly the same but it was always difficult to find families to talk about it like you just did. So thank you 😊
Thank you for this it it near impossible finding Australian families discuss their experience in the foster care system. We are thinking about becoming foster carers and this is so helpful.
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you for all the useful info!!
Thank you so much for making this! I'm interested in becoming a foster carer down the track and would love to chat to you more!
Great content...tks for sharing...its been some time Im thinking about becoming a foster parent!
Just listened to your very informative talk on Foster care. I am passionate in fostering and would look into this to care for these kids
Such a great video! Thanks for providing all this information ❤️
Thanks so much for the information!
Thank you. So hard to find info and videos on Australian fostering system. I'm looking at becoming a foster carer in the future. I've heard there are some strange rules like you can't cut their hair, they can't go on school camps, can't go to sleep overs and you can't have someone like your adult child or your parents come stay over for a visit. Is this true and what other weird rules are there, that people might not be aware of?
Great questions. Yes there are some things that you will need to have permission to do, foster care is generally temporary care and they will be returning to their parents at some stage. DCP are still responsible for the children, their legal guardians, so anything that a guardian is required to sign off on DCP will need to do it - things like school permission slips, medical visits etc. They can go DCP just need to sign off on it which is understandable as they are legally their guardians not you as their foster carer. DCP need to be aware of the adults that are in your home not only to keep the children safe but to safe guard the adults as well. If you have regular babysitters or people staying over then DCP will need to evaluate those adults as well. They will need to have police clearance and fill in some paper work and be interviewed by DCP too.
All these rules seem silly at first but when you get into the system and see and hear about the different situations you can understand why these rules are in place. It is to keep everybody safe and protected, both the children and the families who are caring for them.
Very helpful video! thanks a lot. I've just started the process to becoming a respite carer (and if all goes well will progress into longer term care). It is something that has been on my heart for a long time but I'm still nervous and wondering when/ if I will feel truly prepared and what else I can do to help myself feel more prepared.
I am glad that you found the video helpful. Sometimes we cannot be fully prepared for these things and we just have to jump in and learn on our feet as we go. All you can do is get your home ready and prepare your heart for taking care of children who need a lot of love. Another thing you can do is prepare the people who are in your life that will be your support network. Share with them the journey you are on and if they would like to help you could ask them to help you with meals when a new child comes into your home, they could help provide items you may need or go to the supermarket for you when you can not go. They can provide encouragement and moral support too. Good luck on your Foster Care journey❤️
Great to hear from an Aussie!! I’m in WA too and looking into this atm. Do you know any great local foster carer support groups in the Perth area?
No sorry I don't know of any support groups. There is a Foster Care Association that you can sign up to, they may have information about support groups or often the different district officers will know about groups
Absolutely loved this- I can definitely relate ❤︎
This was really helpful. I am single and interested in doing emergency or respite foster care to begin with. I am curious about the home inspection that they come and do, as you said that the process took 9 months. Is that 9 months after the home inspection? The reason I ask is that as a renter in the current Sydney market I have had to move at short notice before, so what if you move would you have to start again? Also, I would need to rent a more expensive home to accomodate an extra room, so 9 months is quite a long time to pay higher rent if no child is staying during that time. Also what if after that 9 months they said no & didn’t accept you, or did you have reassurance earlier on that you would be accepted?
The amount of time that it takes to get registered varies and there are no guarantees while you are going through the registration process that you are going to be approved. If you move house they just come and give it a quick inspection you don’t have to re register. They may ask you to make some changes and they will come back and look again. Once you start the process you can ask them all the questions you have and then you can decide if you would like to move forward with registering to be a foster caregiver or not. Good luck on your journey 😊🤞🏻
@@Mariekalake Thanks so much for the reply and this info. Worries about renting are the only thing causing me to stall. I will definitely find out more. Thank you so much!
Hi Marieka, our family is currently awaiting licensing after completing the training and assessment process in NSW with DCJ. Thanks so much for your informative vlog. I'd love to find more positive Aussie social networks to join as we embark on this journey. Can you recommend any other groups/individuals you think would be helpful to join and follow?
Good luck on your Foster Care journey. I have not found any groups to follow myself so unfortunately I can not recommend anything to you. When we first started out we belonged to the Foster Care Association here in WA. I do not deal with the Foster system anymore as we are now legal guardians so I have not needed to connect in anywhere
As a family who are looking at long term foster care or adoption in Queensland (Gold Coast), do many placements become permanent / able to be adopted.
So if your a foster career you may or may not have parental rights , parents can voltnarly tell the courts they don't want there parental rights , or they can be taken in extreme cases until that happens appdotion I sent possible, in the beginning when kids are taken they are given a plan and actions and things they need do to bring there kids home , while this is happening they are in a safe place to stay (hopefully) while it's been sorted out but in some cases parent's are don't follow what they are ment to do and that can prolong but a kid can be in care for years but until there is an agreement from courts it's a , (long process most of the time and diet with only by case workers and foster cares have no involvement in these matters whatsoever ) then no appdotion and it's mostly out of foster cares hands until they are given the green light to adoption can take place you also need to be registered for adoption ,
Every child and every case is different. As a carer you can say that I am interested in only taking a long term child and say no to any short term placements then the depart should only place children with you who they know will not be returning to their parents.
Great video. Im signing up to foster care with Life without Barriers. I have 2 biological daughters 11 and 14 and also homeschool. I would love to know if I can homeschool them whilst in my care?
NVM I got my answer LOL
Big mistake we nearly lost our Biological Daughter because of a teenager who abandoned us in the ten years we have seen it all stuff you are never told.
Farmer2492 could you elaborate more on that? Do you think fostering is a bad idea if you have biological children as well? Or just homeschooling? I’m thinking about fostering and I would just love to hear your opinion if.
@@pillowheaven975 Put it this way 10 thousand dollars later in lawyer fees, and nearly losing our child but you are never told that in training .you only hear the good bits, if a foster child takes off and makes lies about you The DHS will come after you like they did us the foster child even admitted she made it all up. but the dhs still believe her, my answer is no dont do it if you do have a good lawyer on hand.and remember not many lawyers will take on the dhs. as we found out, all the foster care Australia people need to do is tell the truth in training.
@@pillowheaven975 If you have Facebook look on there under foster caring it will open your eyes up,
Thank you for your Taking! It’s very nice! Please can you become a Foster care if you are vegan or vegetarian? All so about visa if you in temporary residence , can I do a application for foster care? Or can be volunteering Etc.... Thank you. Kind regards. Dilma.
The way that your family eats should have no effect on becoming a foster carer. i would think that you would need permanent residence if you are taking in long term children in to care. the department will want to make sure that you can provide long term care for the children and not have to move then to another home if your plans change. They may allow you to do temporary care of respite care though, but you can go along to an information evening with the department and ask them those questions
Can you do homeschooling with foster children? Or does adoption/guardianship need to occur first?
It is case by case but generally there will need to be a guardianship in place
Which agency are you registered with and are there bad or good ones?
I did not go through an agency, I went straight with the department and all my friends and family have gone straight with the department as well so I can not speak into what agencies are like as I just do not know sorry. But going straight with the department was great, it felt like it was a bit quicker to do that then go with an agency. We signed up to the Foster Care Association and they will act on your behalf with the department if you have any troubles. They also provide lots of great advice and assistance if you need it too. Good luck with you foster care journey.
Can we choose age/gender of children. I know that sounds perculiar, but I'd love to be long term carer. I'd love to be the dad to take his son to footy games and go fishing. That sounds really old lol, I'm 26, a teacher and really considering this.
They will present cases to you and you can say yes or no. For our family we needed to take in children who were younger then our own children so our "yes" was for children one and under. There is always a great need for careers so they will always present cases to you that may be outside of your "yes" but you do have the choice to say yes or no
How does short term foster caring work?
Short term foster care is where you are caring for children who will be reunited with their family. You take them into your care full time and you look after them, taking them to school and any appointments that they need to attend etc. They will continue to have scheduled visits with their parents. Those visits are supervised but you will not be apart of them. You are taking care of them on behave of children's services so they will tell you what needs to happen with the child. Eventually over time they will leave your care and go back to their family or if they have not been able to reunite with their family then they will find a permanent home for them. Short term care can be rewarding, being apart of helping a family to get back on their feet and being reunited once again but it is also difficult when you bond with a child and they have to leave your family.
Can you travel with them to different countries?
Will thay give you any documents to prove your "guardianship" or "adoption" or anything like that ?
No
Yes you can. You need approval to travel interstate or overseas and if the parents are still holding guardianship then they have to agree but if the Department is the guardian then they approve or not.
You can travel you just need to seek permission from the department. If the parents are involved then they may need to approve as well. It all depend on the circumstances, every child and every case is different. Once you have guardianship you will receive official court documents stating that you are their guardian