A Child Very Near You Could Be Counting On Your Help

Foster care agency MacKillop Family Services is focusing attention on the urgent need for foster carers in all locations, to provide stable and secure care for children and young people unable to live safely in their own homes.

The long-term impacts of COVID-19 and the current cost of living crisis have led to fewer people applying to be new foster carers. In some areas the numbers have dropped by up to 50%. This comes at a time when there are nearly 48,000 Australian children needing outof- home care support, with only 26,000 foster and kinship carers to care for them.

Christina D’Acunto, MacKillop’s Carer Recruitment & Development Coordinator who oversees the Hawkesbury region, says many people in the community are surprised to learn there is a critical shortage of foster carers within regions like Hawkesbury and its surrounds.

“People think foster care is something that is needed in other communities or only in larger cities. But right across Australia, in every local town and community, for a wide variety of reasons, there are kids who need safe homes where they are nurtured and secure.

“We know that stability is key to a young person’s wellbeing as is keeping them within their local community where they can maintain connections and thrive in a familiar environment. We are putting the call out for people to think about how they can support local children by opening their home and making that difference to a child’s life,” says Christina.

Foster carers come from diverse backgrounds: you could be married, single, in same sex relationships, working or retired, own or rent your home – the most essential criterion is that you have the capacity to create a safe and nurturing home to support vulnerable children.

Foster carers are part of a larger support network, working with health professionals, case managers and therapeutic practitioners who support both the child and carer.

Typically, foster carers say that if someone has that ‘inner sense’ of wanting to give to the community, and to most of all help a child, then foster care is a very rewarding thing to do.

If you’ve considered making a difference in your community, learn more about foster care at mackillop.org.au or by calling 1300 791 677.