Foster and kinship care

Foster care is a form of family-based care for children and young people who can’t live at home for various reasons. Where possible, children are reunited with their families as soon as possible.

When children are in care, they need a safe and stable home environment so they can be themselves and thrive.

Almost anyone who wants to make a difference in a child’s life can become a foster carer.

To be eligible to apply, you’ll need to be at least 18 years of age. You also need to commit to home safety and personal background checks, as well as foster care training, so you have the skills you need to be a great carer.

Many people rule themselves out and think they can’t apply. It doesn’t matter if you are single, male or female, in a same sex partnership, have other children at home or no children at all.

What matters is your passion to make a difference. We’ll chat with you about your personal situation with you during the application process to see what the options are.

Our foster carers come from all walks of life, everyday Australians who are doing extraordinary things, you can read their stories here.

And there are so many ways you can get involved outside of being a foster carer, like donating a school bag with supplies. You can find out how you can get involved here.

Becoming an approved foster carer is a deeply personalised journey that we take with you. The application process is relatively straight-forward, but understandably thorough and can take between six to 12 months. Although it involves interviews, safety checks and skills training, we’re here to support you at every step along the way.

If you’re interested in finding out more, the first thing to do is speak to one of our experienced team who can talk you through how it all works.

You can also send through your details through our Contact Form or attend one of our Information Sessions to find out more.

You may choose to be a part-time or full-time carer. Whatever you decide, you can still make a significant impact on a child or young person’s life.

You can choose to offer short-term, long-term, emergency or short breaks (also known as respite care, in which you are giving other long term carers a break).

Many foster carers start with short break (respite) care and become full time foster carers after gaining some experience.

Emergency care is provided when children or young people urgently need a safe place to stay for a short period of time. This may happen when a child first comes into care or while they are waiting to move to a new family. Emergency carers are often skilled in helping children who have experienced abuse and trauma.

Respite carers can look after children for a weekend or a few weeks so that their long-term carers can have a break. You can read about foster carer Alan’s experience with respite care here.

Short-term carers look after children for weeks or months, up to a maximum of two years while longer term plans are being made.

Long-term placements are for children who can’t return to live with their families. Carers provide a safe and stable home until they turn 18 years old and start adulthood.

Children and young people arrive in care for many different reasons. It may be due to neglect, abuse or trauma. When their families can’t help to care for them, that’s where we assist.

You will be matched with a child who needs your unique life experience and skills at this critical point in their childhood to create positive memories and feel safe and loved during challenging times.

We’re here for you to work hand in hand – together – to build a strong, safe and nurturing environment as a launch pad for your foster child to thrive.

At all stages, we’re here to help you fulfil your role as a carer, however, it’s important that you’re still able to financially support yourself and your family.

The financial support available for your foster child includes Queensland Government payments like the Fortnightly Carers Allowance. The amount you get will depend on a number of factors such as your child’s age. The payment would be expected to meet the basic day to day costs for things like shoes, clothing and so on.

We will work with you so it’s clear from the start as to who has financial responsibility for costs that fall outside the Fortnightly Carers Allowance.

There are also a range of other financial options available you may be able to apply for including:

• caring for children with high support or complex special needs
• if you live in a regional or remote area
• unexpected expenses for example that will come out of the child needing extra support over and above government and other payments (on a case by case basis).

Plus, you can also apply to have pre planned expenses reimbursed through a scheme called ‘Child Related Costs’. This would be in discussion with us and your Child Safety Officer.

These costs are considered on a case by case basis and include things like:

• educational costs for general schooling and vocational training
• healthcare costs including general medical, physical and mental health specialists
• travel costs for visiting family, court attendances and some overseas travel costs (based on Guardian consent for the child to travel)
• recreation costs including leisure and recreational activities including pocket money
• purchase of gifts, hobbies, entertainment, holiday expenses.

If you need to talk to someone, we are always here to help you and you can call us any time day or night through our 24-hour support phone line.

You can read more about the financial support available to carers in our Resources section here.

We support people like you to make a real difference to the lives of children and young people in foster care. Anglicare Southern Queensland has created safe and supportive foster care communities for more than 30 years.

Our person-centred approach means we work with you to find out how foster caring can fit with your lifestyle. We connect with you at every stage of your foster care journey, supporting and connecting you to training so you will have the skills you need to be a great carer. We also offer resources and access to wider community groups.

It’s important to know that we’re in this together. When you become a foster carer, you’ll be partnered with a dedicated case practitioner to provide the support you need to make caring for a foster child a rewarding and fulfilling experience. You also become part of a wider community of Anglicare carers in Queensland.

We’re here to connect you to the extensive support that we offer that includes ongoing training programs, resources and access to wider community groups at each step in your journey with us.

We understand that sometimes you just need someone to talk to. Our 24/7 phone support is available for you to call us at any time of the day or night.

If you decide to take the foster care journey, a Foster Care Case Practitioner will be with you every step of the way. The role of a Case Practitioner is to recruit, train, assess, and support foster carers.

Case Practitioners are also responsible for matching children with an appropriate foster family. Case Practitioners are part of a wider team who also provide intensive support to children and carers.