Carers Newsletter
Quarter 1 Jan – Mar 2023
On the 11th of December the staff in Western Australia held our Children and Carer Christmas party in Kings Park!
Our amazing case worker Aliesha, won us a grant through Variety to the amount of $1000. This was for entertainment and items to go towards celebrating Christmas with our amazing Carers and Children.
With this money we hired a Santa, giant games and a face painter. We were also able to purchase a new Christmas tree (as last years one has since retired), and we purchased a few little extra bits, like bubbles and a few games for the Children.
We had a lovely day, the weather was perfect, and we even had a chance to catch up with some of the Children’s families, which was lovely to see.
We would also like to thank both Variety, for the wonderful grant money, and Operation Sunshine for all of the amazing gifts for our Children. Operation Sunshine support Foundations Care in so many ways all throughout the year, and we really appreciate all that they do.
We hope you all had just as much fun as we did, and we hope you all have an amazing Christmas and New Year!
What is the QFKC Support Team?
The support team is a group of trained specialist local foster and kinship carers who have volunteered to provide advice, support and advocate on behalf of other foster and kinship carers.
Support Team members are attached to one of six regions across Queensland. They have the capacity to provide advice, support and advocacy to all carers in their region and across the State where required.
QFKC support team members also provide face to face support to carers within proximity or tele link into meetings where needed.
The Support Team member provides a local avenue for foster and kinship carers to receive advice, support and/or advocacy on individual matters.
You can find a list of Support Team Members and how to contact them in the link below
https://www.qfkc.com.au/images/FAST/WEBSITE_Support_Team_Members_2022-11-29.pdf
So, the Carer Engagement team is creating age-appropriate letters of introduction for children and young people to read about their new placements.
These letters will be used by caseworkers to help ease the transition into a new placement.
Going back to school after a few weeks of fun and relaxation is never easy, but kids aren’t the only ones who struggle with it.
Parents also find it difficult when their kids head back to school, and many experience emotions ranging from sadness to anxiety and even resentment.
Fortunately, getting well-prepared a few days in advance can make easing back into the normal school routine a lot less overwhelming for both parents and kids. Click the image below for some handy kids on getting your kids back into the school routine.
Letters of Introduction to Placements
Arriving at a new placement is daunting for a child or young person and loads of questions run through their minds.
- Who are the carers?
- What do they call them?
- Do they work?
- Do they have other children?
- What do they enjoy doing as a family?
- Do they have pets?
National Close the Gap Day
March 16th 2023
In Australia, Aboriginal infants die more often than non-Indigenous infants, Aboriginal people’s life expectancy is shorter, with more than double the rate of illness.
The objective of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (the National Agreement) is to enable Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and governments to work together to overcome the inequality experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and achieve life outcomes equal to all Australians.
You can help by educating yourself what the National Agreement entails or by donating to ‘Close the Gap’ on the links to the right.
with a Carer
Name: Tanya Watts.
Location: Rockhampton.
How long have you been a foster carer? Since 2006.
Current placement/s: 4 young people in placement, 2 on long term orders.
Why did you start fostering children and young people? Working in the childcare profession and a lot of children coming through that were in care and needed care.
And what keeps you going? Being part of the kid’s growth and being part of reunification or transition to kin.
What has been the biggest highlight of your foster care journey? Working with families with reunification.
What are the biggest challenges you find as a foster carer? Communication within the sector.
What advice would you offer to another foster carer who may be struggling currently? Ask for support and self-care.
What changes would you like to see happen in out-of-home-care? Less intrusion with the carers family – e.g. Multiple visits with multiple people.
Harmony Week is a time to celebrate Australian multiculturalism, and the successful integration of migrants into our community.
Australia is one of the most successful multicultural countries in the world and we should celebrate this and work to maintain it.
Harmony Week is about inclusiveness, respect and belonging for all Australians, regardless of cultural or linguistic background, united by a set of core Australian values.
In 2021 FDC committed to developing our first Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). The purpose of a RAP is to enable organisations to sustainably and strategically take meaningful action to advance reconciliation.
Based around the core pillars of relationships, respect and opportunities, RAPs provide tangible and substantive benefits for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, increasing economic equity and supporting First Nations self-determination.
Important Dates
January 26th 2023
All offices closed – contact on call.
16th March 2023
National Close the Gap
21st March 2023
Harmony Day
