Every child deserves a safe, loving, and stable environment to grow and thrive. Unfortunately, due to various family circumstances, some children in Australia cannot live with their biological parents. In such cases, Foster Care and Kinship Care become essential avenues to provide them with the care and protection they need. Across Australia, both government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) play a vital role in supporting vulnerable children through structured foster care systems and kinship care arrangements. This article explores how these systems work, and the policies that guide them.
What Is Foster Care?
Foster care is a form of out-of-home care where a child is placed with a certified foster carer when their family is unable to care for them safely. This can happen for various reasons, such as neglect, abuse, mental illness, or substance dependency within the home. The aim of foster care is to provide temporary (and sometimes permanent) care while child protection authorities work to address the issues affecting the child's family.
In Australia, foster care services are managed at the state and territory level, with support from licensed NGOs and charitable organisations. Foster carers are trained and assessed before being approved, and ongoing support is provided to ensure both the child and the carer are safe and supported.
What Is Kinship Care?
Kinship care is when a child is placed in the care of a relative, family friend, or someone they have a strong existing relationship with. This type of care is preferred when possible, as it allows children to maintain cultural, family, and community ties. In Australia, kinship care can be either formal (arranged and monitored by child protection authorities) or informal (arranged privately within families).
NGOs involved in kinship care help assess and support carers, particularly when the care arrangement becomes long-term. The goal is to provide a familiar and nurturing environment while ensuring the child's well-being is safeguarded.
How Foster and Kinship Care NGOs Work
Non-government organisations (NGOs) that work in foster care and kinship care are usually contracted or funded by state governments to help recruit, train, assess, and support carers. These NGOs also play a critical role in monitoring placements, providing respite care, offering counselling services, and advocating for the child's best interests.
Some well-known NGOs in Australia operating in this space include:
- Berry Street
- MacKillop Family Services
- Anglicare
- Life Without Barriers
- Key Assets Australia
- OzChild
These organisations often have caseworkers who act as a liaison between the child, their biological family, the carers, and government child protection services. Their role is to ensure that each placement is safe, stable, and meets the emotional, educational, and physical needs of the child.
The Foster and Kinship Care Process
The process of placing a child into care usually follows these steps:
- Assessment and Removal: If a child is at risk, child protection services conduct an investigation and may remove the child from their home.
- Placement Decision: Authorities first try to identify a suitable kinship carer. If not available, the child is placed in foster care.
- NGO Involvement: An NGO helps arrange placement, provides training and support for carers, and monitors the welfare of the child.
- Care Plan Development: A care plan is created that outlines goals, timelines, and arrangements regarding education, health, and visitation rights with the biological family.
- Ongoing Reviews: Regular reviews assess whether the child can be safely reunited with their family or if long-term or permanent care arrangements should be made.
Government Policies Guiding Foster and Kinship Care
Foster and kinship care in Australia are guided by child protection legislation specific to each state and territory, along with national frameworks like the National Standards for Out-of-Home Care. Key principles include:
- Best Interest of the Child: All decisions must prioritize the child's safety, well-being, and long-term development.
- Permanency Planning: Focuses on achieving a stable, long-term solution—either through reunification, long-term care, or adoption.
- Cultural Safety: Especially important for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, ensuring placements support their cultural identity and connections.
- Carer Support and Training: Carers receive ongoing support, training, and sometimes financial assistance to help cover the child's needs.
- Trauma-Informed Care: Recognises that children in care often experience trauma, and care must be sensitive to these experiences.
States like New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland have their own departments (e.g., DCJ, DFFH, Child Safety Services) that collaborate with NGOs to implement these policies consistently.
Challenges Faced by Foster and Kinship Care Systems
Despite their importance, foster and kinship care systems face several challenges:
- Shortage of carers, especially for older children, children with disabilities, and sibling groups.
- Burnout among carersdue to emotional stress and lack of resources.
- High turnover ratesin NGO staff and carers can affect continuity of care.
- Cultural mismatchesin placements, particularly for Indigenous children.
- Limited fundingand administrative delays that impact the speed and quality of services.
To address these issues, Australian governments are increasingly investing in carer recruitment campaigns, Indigenous-led care models, and trauma-informed training for caregivers.
Conclusion
Foster care centres and kinship care NGOs in Australia play a life-changing role for thousands of children each year. These systems exist to protect, support, and empower children who cannot live with their birth families due to unsafe circumstances. Guided by government policy and driven by compassion, NGOs work tirelessly to create stable, nurturing environments for children through both foster and kinship care placements.
Although challenges remain, continued collaboration between governments, NGOs, and communities is helping build a safer, more supportive system for vulnerable children across the country. With the right support, every child has the chance to heal, grow, and thrive in a caring home—whether it's with a foster family or a relative who steps in when it matters most.
