In today’s busy world, it’s easy to think that fostering is for someone else... but the truth is, every day, it’s done by someone just like you.
Become a Foster Carer With Us
Becoming a foster carer is a meaningful commitment, and the impact can be profound. By providing a child with a safe and supportive home, you’re giving them the opportunity to grow and reach their full potential.
As a foster carer with South Coast AMS, you’ll play a crucial role in helping Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children stay connected to their culture, even when they are away from their families. You can make a lasting difference in a child’s life by providing love, support and care when they need it most.
For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, staying connected to culture is essential for their emotional and social wellbeing. While we aim to place children with Aboriginal carers, this isn’t always possible. That’s why we welcome carers from all backgrounds who are committed to supporting these cultural connections.
We’ll Be With You Every Step Of The Way
From the start, we provide training to prepare you for your role as a foster carer, ensuring you feel confident and supported. Our dedicated team is available 24/7 to offer guidance and assistance whenever you need it. We also value the sense of community and connection – as a foster carer, you become a vital part of our organisation. Together, we work closely to achieve the best outcomes for the children and young people in your care.
Understanding Foster Care
Foster carers provide a home for children and young people who cannot live with their birth families for various reasons. These reasons could include situations like parental illness, substance abuse, family conflicts, or other circumstances that make it unsafe or impossible for the child to remain at home.
Foster care is designed to provide a stable, safe, and nurturing environment for children while their birth families work through their challenges or until a more permanent solution can be arranged. Our foster care families create safe, loving environments that offer stability for as short as a few days or as long as necessary. Carers choose the type of care that best suits their individual circumstances.
Why Foster Care Matters
Foster carers play a crucial role in the lives of these children, offering them stability, support, love and care during a time of transition and uncertainty. They help meet the child’s basic needs, provide emotional support, and often work closely with social workers and other professionals to ensure the child’s wellbeing.
We see significant and life-long benefits for children, young people and their families who we support in their foster care journey. For many children and young people, the right care can help them progress and achieve in their lives and develop into happy, healthy adults.
Fostering isn’t about being perfect... it’s about being present. It’s about the little things that add up to something big.
Who Can Become a Foster Carer?
We welcome people from all backgrounds to apply for foster care. Whether you're single or married, with or without children of your own, we encourage you to consider this rewarding role. To become a foster carer, you need to:
- Be over 18 years of age
- Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident
- Successfully complete the probity check process
- Appreciate the importance of maintaining Aboriginal culture and family connections
What Makes a Great Foster Carer?
Great foster carers are compassionate, patient, and willing to create a stable and nurturing environment. You’ll need to support a child’s connection to their birth family and community, provide structure, and offer consistent love and care. Every child comes with their own story, and your role will be to help them heal and grow.
Types of Foster Care
There are different types of foster care, depending on a child’s needs. You can choose the type that best fits your situation:
- Kinship Care: Care provided by extended family members.
- Respite Care: Short-term care to give a primary carer a break, often over weekends or holidays.
- Emergency & Short-Term Care: Care at short notice for days to weeks.
- Long-Term Care: Ongoing care for over six months or more.
- Agency Carer Transfers: For carers moving from other agencies, we support transitions to ensure cultural needs are met.
Support for Foster Carers
You won’t be alone on this journey. Our caseworkers, program managers, and service providers work as a team to support you and the child in your care. We provide:
- 24/7 support for emergencies and guidance.
- Regular training opportunities to build your skills.
- A collaborative team environment to ensure the best outcomes for everyone involved.
What is an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation (ACCO)?
ACCOs are agencies led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, providing culturally safe services, including foster care. Supported by the NSW Government, ACCOs follow the Aboriginal Child Placement Principle, ensuring that Aboriginal children stay connected to their culture.
How ACCOs Support Foster Carers
- Helping create nurturing, culturally safe homes.
- Ensuring children maintain strong connections with their families and communities.
- Supporting each child’s cultural identity and sense of belonging.
About Our Organisation
South Coast AMS is the only Non-Government, Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (ACCHO) providing Permanency Support services in the Shoalhaven and Far South Coast regions. We are a fully accredited agency under the Children’s Guardian NSW Standards for Statutory Out-of-Home Care. We are also accredited under the Australian Quality Improvement Council’s Health and Community Services Standards.
We support Aboriginal Foster Care placements for children and young people aged 0-18 years. We have offices in Nowra, Batemans Bay, Goulburn, and Wollongong. From these offices, we support Foster Care placements in the Shoalhaven, and down to the Victorian border. Caseworkers, in partnership with our Foster Carer’s, provide support services to children who are unable to live safely with their birth families. We strive to place children and young people in a safe, well-functioning, stable foster home allowing them to develop to the best of their potential.
We work closely with birth parents and family members, and encourage participation in permanency decisions, with the goal of restoration. We also follow the Office of the Children’s Guardian strict guidelines. Foster Care families receive a Foster Carer’s allowance and help from our PSP team is always available for Carers and families.
Foster Carers personal experiences
Words of encouragement
"As a member of our community, I was very motivated to care for kids as I saw firsthand that our kids needed their own kind to care, and they needed to remain in their communities. I feel this was so important to the kids and their families.”
Q) What do you think children/young people need from a Foster Carer?
Support – Let the child know they can talk to you. Be there for them. Listen a lot. Make them part of your mob so they feel they belong even if it is just for a little while.
Q) What do your own children think about being part of a foster family?
My children think it’s great. They can help out. They try to help as much as they can. When I became a Carer, the agency I was employed by gave me support and training. Anyone who does care for kids will get training on how to care for children who have special needs. I found the training helpful and it gives me more ideas on how to talk and support our kids when they come into care.
Q) What advice would you give to anyone who is thinking about becoming a Foster Carer?
Talk to your family about this because they always think differently, and try to have a supportive team. Sometimes it’s hard not to get connected to the children, and when they leave, it can be hard on us. But most of all, being a Carer, you get a lot of joy out of just knowing you helped out when they needed someone. I really enjoy being a Carer.
