Our Carers: The heart of Life Without Barriers

What is Life Without Barriers? A national not for profit organisation providing Mental Health, Disability, Out of Home Care services In all states and territories Principally a foster care agency targeting children and young people with complex needs, challenging behaviour & high medical needs Nationally we have over 1700 foster carers (including respite), and 1200 children and young people placed

Focus for todays presentation… Foster carers Getting them Keeping them And the future for them

Recruiting Foster Carers Becoming increasingly competitive LWB is in the ‘business’ of recruitment Government are our customers Children and young people are our clients Our foster carers are our core resource - they are what we do. They are our most important asset and they need to enjoy that status.

Recruitment cont. The system of recruitment focuses on exclusion- Who shouldn’t be foster carers Consider your recruitment strategy- does each step add value As an industry we must expand our pool of carers We are in sales- to be successful we must give immediate, positive responses We must broaden our view as to who can be carers- broaden our middle class values Windswept and interesting, The relationship carers form with the child or young person in their care is the key. It leads to trust, safety and confidence

Retaining foster carers Culture and status Every carer believes their relationship with their child is the most important thing to the organisation Carers must feel at least equal with or of higher status to the rest of the organisation Support Support is the key, it needs to be consistent, regular and available LWB separates the carers support worker, support workers are available 24/7 Carers also receive specialist support: clinicians etc LWB has minimum standards in regard to the support of carers.

Retaining foster carers cont. Communication Needs to be both formal & informal So they feel part of the organisation and understand their value Training and development Practical, relevant and enjoyable. It must meet the needs of the carer as opposed to the organisation or the funding body.

The future for carers Government departments are increasingly outcomes focused What are you doing with the young people in your care How are you preparing young people for leaving care and how are you accountable for that Emphasis on identifiable and specific life skills, including; Health Education Community integration Family Independent living skills Vocational Fundamental to these outcomes is the involvement and motivation of carers as the foundation to young peoples development. Carers need to be an integral part of decision making and involvement with program and case planning

The future for carers cont. Fundamental to any outcomes for children and young people in OOHC is the involvement and motivation of carers- they are the foundation to young peoples development. Carers need to be an integral part of decision making and have central involvement with case planning and specialised programs.

Life Without Barriers Initiatives LWB has developed the national Carer Advancement and Training Team (CATT) as the driver of our current work to review and improve our support to the heart of the organisation - our carers. A National Carer Survey was undertaken to understand the issues facing carers and the obstacles that stand in the way of them providing great support and and care to our vulnerable clients.

Carer Survey Results Recruitment 55% of carers were referred to LWB through a friend or acquaintance that were already a carer of LWB, 16% through advertisement, 14% through a friend or acquaintance, 12% through other means and 0.5% through internet, TV or Radio. Support 71% of carers viewed the support they currently received as being positive for the health and maintenance of the placement. Training Training topics that carers were most interested in were Challenging Behaviour, Problem Solving, Abuse, Answering the hard questions kids pose, developing the self esteem of the child, Autism and Aspergers syndrome, Mental Health, Stress Management and Responding to Allegations.

CATT Initiatives Recruitment Nationally consistent recruitment framework that involves current carers in recruitment and is based on LWB experience of what works Established a ;Community of practice’ within LWB on Carer recruitment Nationally consistent recruitment material- DVD, welcome kit- all designed by current carers Support & Communication National Carer Consultation Group & National Aboriginal Carer Consultation Group Local carer reference groups in all locations Carer communication and support framework National and regional newsletters National Carer Conference April 2009

CATT Initiatives Training & Development Standard learning requirements for all carers The Complex Child workshops rolled out to all carers nationwide Moving forwards: Learning plans in place for all carers to meet needs of carers in a practical, tangible way.

Closing message If you are in the business of foster care…. …then get in the business of foster carers

Thank You