Out Of Home Care
Do you believe in a better future? Do you have love to give and knowledge to share? Caring for a child is the most rewarding gift you can give. Open your heart and your home to change a life.
All children deserve a safe and loving home. That’s why we became an accredited provider of Out of Home Care, to support the children who are in foster care to maintain their cultural identity, connection to family and thrive in their environment.
What types of foster care do we provide?
Our team work to find foster carers who can support our children and young people in a variety of care arrangements. These include:
Respite
A respite placement is considered to be between two to 28 days.
Short Term
A placement may be required for any length of time, from one month up to two years. This type of placement is generally dependant on the court system and whether restoration to birth family or kinship placement is an order.
Long Term
A long term placement is required when Department of Communities & Justice have assessed all family options and believe it is in the child’s best interest to remain in care until the age of 18. Should the parents wish to demonstrate they have the capacity to begin caring for the child again, they can take the matter to court at any stage throughout the long-term order.
Kinship
Kinship is when a child has family members who are willing to take on full-time care.
How do we support our network of foster carers?
Dedicated Caseworker
All Winanga-Li carers will be assigned a caseworker to offer you support and guidance on any given placement. In addition, they’ll visit you a minimum of once a month to ensure the child’s needs are met while in your care, as well as supporting you in your important role as a carer.
Training
Winanga-Li ensures that its carers have the opportunity to participate in ongoing training programs. We facilitate a number of in-house training programs, specifically Behaviour Management and Life Story Work.
Assistance with Expenses
We want children to thrive in their environment. Children deserve every opportunity to participate in sport, education and social activities. To facilitate these opportunities, carers are provided with financial assistance to meet the expenses of caring for children.
Do Winanga-Li foster carers need to be Aboriginal?
Our goal is always to keep Aboriginal children connected to culture and country. We encourage non-Aboriginal carers with a commitment to supporting children to maintain a strong Aboriginal identity. Winanga-Li supports children’s cultural engagement through:
- Our team of Aboriginal workers
- Culture Camps and cultural education
- Providing Gamilaraay language resources
- Linking children with age appropriate Winanga-Li activities and programs
- Facilitating family contact
- Providing training to non-Aboriginal carers about culturally informed care
We welcome carers from diverse backgrounds, and are always happy to share our knowledge to build cultural inclusion.
