Child Safety
Foster and Kinship Care
0-17 YEARS
Youturn’s Foster and Kinship Care program provides placement support to carers and children. The service is responsible for the support of Foster and Kinship carers as well as care management of the child or young person.
There are a range of different support provided by our Youturn team including:
- Assisting all care placements to achieve positive and long term outcomes
- Supporting transition of children and young people between placements
- Assisting young people to transition to independent living at the end of foster care
- Where possible providing family reunification support
Foster carers are allocated a Case Manager who they have regular face to face and phone contact with.. These Case Managers will visit carers and children at least monthly and provide all carers with individualised ongoing training and support including financial.
Who can be a carer?
Foster carers are everyday people from all walks of life who are able to care for children in a safe, stable and supportive environment. You don’t have to be wealthy or have a large home to become a carer. A variety of people are needed as carers so that we can best match the needs of children and young people.
A foster carer needs to be over 18 years old and can:
- live anywhere in Queensland
- be an individual, couple or family
- married, defacto or same sex couples
- come from any cultural background
- work full or part-time
- have varying family circumstances.
Types of Foster Care
Depending on your circumstances and the commitment you may be able to make, there are different types of family-based care which may suit you, your family and your lifestyle.
However, no matter what the length of time , the positive impact you can have in a child or young person’s life can be immeasurable.
Short-term Foster Care
Short-term foster carers look after children experiencing a short-term family breakdown or children who are waiting for a long-term carer to be found. You would be asked to make a commitment to one child or siblings at any one time. Generally children requiring care will be 0 – 12 years of age. Placement can range from a few months up to a period of two years
Permanent Foster Care
Long-term carers are needed for children generally aged 5 – 12 years (but could be up to 18 years) who the Court has ruled will never be able to return to their birth parents because it is not safe. In long-term care we carefully match children and carers to find children a permanent home.
Respite Foster Care
Some carers provide short breaks for long-term foster and kinship carers. These carers choose when they provide care, such as on weekends or during holidays. Respite carers generally offer one weekend every month to look after a foster child and can offer children with a wider social network as well as giving primary carers a break to recharge.
Emergency Care
Emergency carers provide short-term care at short notice for children who urgently need a place to stay. This may be needed when a child first comes into care while a suitable longer term carer is identified, or if they need a home while waiting to move to long-term care.
Kinship Care
The term kinship care refers to arrangements whereby children live with and care cared for by relatives, family friends or community members with the same cultural backgrounds.
Can Youturn a Child’s life around?…
Every child deserves a champion – an adult who will not give up on them, who understands the power of connection and insists that they become the best they can possibly be…You could be the difference for a child in foster care.
As a Foster or Kinship carer you may have that ability to change a child’s life by providing a safe and loving home. Youturn has opportunities for long-term, short-term and respite carers for children in the local community needing placement with a suitable family.
If you are keen to learn more about the rewarding role of being a foster carer, or feel that you can gift a child a family, please contact us on childsafety@youturn.org.au
To learn more about our Foster and Kin Campaign to recruit carers, CLICK HERE
Get in touch
If you are interested in being a Foster Carer or wish to support our work, please contact us to find out more:
T: 0488 980 647
E: childsafety@youturn.org.au
This program is based on the Sunshine Coast
Funded by the Department of Child Safety, Youth and Women
“There are no unwanted children, just unfound families.”
