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Newsletter | August 2019
Welcome to the August edition of the My Forever Family newsletter. This edition we highlight community engagement. My Forever Family regularly keeps in contact with schools and local councils in NSW to spread the word about out of home care. We have posters and ads for organisations to include in their newsletters. We urge you to ask your local schools to include announcements and join a number of other participating schools.
There’s an opportunity to share your views on training in a study conducted by the University of Sydney. If you’re a foster carer, kinship carer, adoptive parent or guardian; find out how you can be involved in the study and have your say.
Make sure you send in your story for your chance to win two books from our great library. We’re always looking for stories to inspire people to take on various types of care. We want to hear from you no matter what type of care you provide!
We hope you enjoy this edition. Thank you for being part of the My Forever Family NSW journey, and caring for kids.
Peter Goslett Head of Operations & Advocacy
SPREAD THE WORD IN YOUR COMMUNITY!Help others to consider the foster care path; we have over 17,000 children and young people in the foster care system in New South Wales. Please download our posters and pin them on noticeboards in your local community groups. We also have ads you can include in school, community groups and local council newsletters. Grassroots action is the most effective!
Visit: www.myforeverfamily.org.au/page/95/collateral
If you need ads in picture format ( jpg) just shoot Evelyn an email on [email protected]
The Institute of Open Adoption Studies at the University of Sydney is conducting a study on standards for training for out-of-home carers in NSW. The Institute is looking for foster carers, kinship carers and adoptive parents or guardians.
To register your interest and receive additional information, please send an email indicating the type of care you provide and your location to [email protected]
We’re regularly asked about preparing for leaving care and how carers and young people can navigate the change.
Carers, along with their case workers, are encouraged to begin the conversation with young people at 15. It does not mean that they have to leave the home at 18 but it does provide the opportunity to start discussing options.
What carers need to know about leaving care plans:
• Agencies are responsible for developing a leaving care plan when the young person is 15
• The case worker will work with the carer, young person and any significant others to develop a plan at least 12 months before they leave statutory care or turn 15 years old
• Leaving care plans need to cover topics such as:
- Accommodation
- Employments and income support
- Training and education
- Personal history, culture
- Contact details
- Independent living skills
- Financial management, health and lifestyles issues
- Agencies and people who are responsible to carry out each part of the leaving care plan
It is also important for the carer to make sure the young
The Health Pathway is a joint initiative of the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) and NSW Health aimed to ensure that every child or young person entering statutory out of home care (OOHC) receives timely and appropriate health screening, assessment, intervention, monitoring and review of their health needs.
DCJ and NGO caseworkers play an essential role in improving the health and well-being of children and young people in OOHC by supporting the Health Pathway process.
If any child or young person in your care has not accessed this service please follow up with your case manager.
For full information on figures and table guides detailing FACS and NGO staff through the health pathway process; please visit www.facs.nsw.gov.au/providers/children-families/OOHC-Health-resources-and-tools/oohc-health-pathway-caseworkers-guide
SHARE YOUR VIEWS – USYD STUDY
FAQS FROM OUR CARER SUPPORT TEAM – LEAVING CARE
OOHC – HEALTH PATHWAY: A GUIDE FOR CASEWORKERS
Online training
MFF TRAINING CALENDAR 2019
Take a look at the training sessions we have coming up – the full calendar is available until December 2019. Have a look at what training is available in your area and book your place online. www.myforeverfamily.org.au/events
Would you like to explore Online Training? Take a look at what’s available: www.myforeverfamily.org.au/page/102/online-training
person has the following documents necessary to prove identity and access required services:
• Original birth certificate
• Medicare card, health care card and medical reports
• School reports, certificates, transcripts
• Tax file number
• Bank book /Atm card
• Leaving care letter from agencies
• Copy of the leaving care plan
• Life story work
At this stage carers and case workers are encouraged to teach basic living skills (particularly around budgeting, finances, paperwork such as applications, etc).
Sexual health conversations are very important. Carers and case workers can discuss positive relationships, power and consent. Of course, these conversations can be difficult, but it’s a matter of working with the case worker to see what the best communication method may be.
The Create Foundation website is a great source of information for young people and carers. You’ll find the handy kit called Go Your Own Way with information and checklists for the leaving care process to help planning for the future. Go to: www.createyourfuture.org.au/about-me/leaving-care/.
As a police officer in the children’s court, I’d seen plenty of kids who needed out-of-home care. Countless little ones in crisis – siblings and families with no safety, security or support – but I never thought I’d get personally involved.
Our life was perfectly ‘traditional’ – I was a police officer for almost 20 years, living a quiet life with my wife and four children. It wasn’t until my first grandchild came along that things began to get a little complicated.
Our son started a relationship with a woman and next thing we knew, we had a three-month-old baby granddaughter! Not long after that, another baby girl arrived. While we did everything we could to help the family, their home life became increasingly unsafe. Over the next four years, violence and drug use frequented their home and the girls were often left on their own in dangerous circumstances. Worried for their safety, my wife and I took our granddaughters into our care.
We tried to create a normal life for the girls, enrolling the eldest in school and working to establish a safe, secure home for them both. But life is never as simple as you’d hope and soon enough, both girls were back with their mother and new half-brother. We stayed connected, visiting on weekends and picking them up from school when their mother forgot to. But eventually, things escalated again and – after seeing the mess, drugs and unsafe people around them – we took the girls into our care once more.
Our granddaughters have been with us ever since and we’ve made sure they have every opportunity they need to excel at life. We enrolled them in good schools, signed them up to sports and surf lifesaving and encouraged them to engage and connect with their Aboriginal heritage. Our doors remained open to our growing family –my grandson and his half-brother moved in, and, while their mother spent time in jail, the girls’ half-brother joined us too. At this stage, we have four children in our home and, while they’re not all our biological grandchildren, they all call us “Nana and Pop” and we love each one of them!
We’ve never regretted taking these kids into our home – we’ve loved every minute and we’re so glad to have had the chance to give them this life. We’ve made sure they know that they are loved and supported and we’ve connected them with the education and psychological care they deserve. These kids have worked through their trauma and are beginning to thrive – excelling in sport and academia and even giving back into their community working with children from troubled homes.
My wife and I believe that we each have to stand up and do our part. Doing my bit and giving these children the care they need has made me a better person. It’s not a job I have to do, it’s a privilege I get to enjoy.
RON’S STORY
Carer Case Study
LOYALTY REWARDS PROGRAM Reap the benefits with MFF discounts! Authorised foster and kinship carers, guardians and people who have adopted children from out-of-home care are entitled to some great discounts when they shop!
If you sign up to the My Forever Family loyalty program you will receive discounts at major retailers – at over 1,000 retailers across NSW.
Stores include Woolworths, Coles, Caltex, Kmart, Target, Hoyts Cinemas, Bunnings, JB Hi Fi, Priceline, and David Jones to name a few.
You can join the My Forever Family loyalty program visiting www.myforeverfamily.org.au/page/94/membership-information
The loyalty program with My Forever Family is open to carers from all agencies regardless of how long they have been a carer, provided they are an authorised carer at the time of registration.
Please note that this program allows you to download vouchers or receive cards to use. For example, Coles will send you an email with barcode to use at a Coles store. Bunnings may send you a voucher card in the post. It depends on the store as to what voucher system they use.
WIN 2 BOOKS BY TELLING US YOUR STORY! For your chance to win two books from our library, please send though your story.
Why did you become a carer? Do you speak another language? Are you a city carer? Regional carer? Do you have a child in care, or a sibling group?
We’d love to hear from you, whatever your story. Please tell us about your experience as a foster or kinship carer, guardian or adoptive parent.
We are looking for real stories from all types of people. Your story will inspire others to open their homes and their hearts to a child.
All stories will protect your identity and that of the child/children mentioned. Please send your story (up to 300 words) to [email protected] and your postal address for your chance to win!
Join today!
PARENTING FEATURESupporting a child through a deathSupporting a child when someone close to them has died can be a challenging and raises many questions about how best to deal with their grief.
How you handle it can depend on many things, including the child’s cultural background, how their loved one died and importantly their age.
Clinical psychologist Dr Andrew Frankland, of Southern Highlands Psychology, specialises in children and adolescents and says the way we speak to children when they are grieving is important in helping them make sense of their feelings.
When you speak to a bereaved child it is best to keep language as simple as possible taking into account the child’s age. Allow them to ask questions and reassure them that is ok to have lots of different feelings. Above all let them know they are loved and safe, says Dr Frankland.
“Try to use clear language – died rather than gone or passed away. Using softer language can be confusing or make them think death isn’t permanent,” Dr Frankland says.
Attending a funeralDeciding whether a child should attend a funeral can be difficult but taking the choice away from children can make it harder for them to mourn and lead to more complicated feelings later on, Dr Frankland says.
“I would tend towards supporting children to attend funerals, although to be sure that children are appropriately prepared by making sure they understand what death means,” he says.
“I would also suggest having a trusted adult who is not directly involved in the service who can be near the child
and take them out if they start having a tricky time especially for younger children who may become bored or restless.”
Viewing the DeceasedDeciding whether a child should spend time with the deceased depends on so many things, including what the child wants, their age, and their cultural background. Dr Frankland recommends giving the child the choice, but to let them know what to expect. That the person will be in a coffin, they will appear to be asleep and they will be cold.
Different stages of grievingChildren experience grief differently to adults, says Dr Frankland. One of the biggest differences is they grieve in a ‘stop/start’ way. It can be confusing for adults who may think the child has moved on quickly. Children can give the impression of coping then may have a huge emotional response to seemingly trivial things.
“I often tell parents grief is like going through a long tunnel – the only way to come out the other end is to go all the way through, and it doesn’t mean the grief is over. For children they might stop and start that journey quite a few times,” Dr Frankland says.
Support from othersIt helps to get support from others to help your child through their grief. This could include teachers, coaches and close family friends. If it is a significant loss, such as a parent or sibling, the grief may take longer so schools play an important part in checking in with children.
“I would recommend carers contact the school throughout that first year and ask for their perspective. With a younger child I would recommend telling the parents of the child’s very close friends. For high school children you might ask them if they want to tell their friends’ parents or if they would prefer you do it,” says Dr Frankland.
MYTH BUSTER MYTH: I can’t be a foster carer if I:• Smoke • Don’t have a spare room• Have a criminal record • Am in a same sex relationship• Am a single person
TRUTH: Some organisations allow you to be a carer with conditions around smoking. Some agencies do not require a spare room depending on the age of the potential foster child and the configuration of your family. Yes, serious criminal offences will exclude you from becoming a carer, but less serious offences may not exclude you.
Being a good carer is not dependent on your relationship status or gender.
The My Forever Family NSW newsletter is produced by the Communications team.
Disclaimer: The information and advice provided in this document/website is general information. It may not apply to a particular case, and as such, must not be taken as legal advice.
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CARER SUPPORT [email protected]
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