A RIVERLAND foster carer is calling for other interested locals to seek out information and get involved during Foster and Kinship Carer Week.
Amanda, who with her partner has three long-term foster children, said the Riverland was “always needing more foster families”.
“It’s really rewarding,” she said.
“It’s about taking them from the circumstances that have led to them being removed from the biological parents and going through the processes of handling their trauma and learning about their trauma and teaching them normal social behaviour and how to regulate emotions.
“Seeing that is the rewarding bit, seeing them get to the point where they are happy, healthy and thriving little people.”
Amanda said she became involved with foster care 13 years ago when she became the foster parent of her 18-month-old nephew.
“My nephew was in the system and we wanted to do everything we can for him, and it grew from there,” she said.
“When he was about 10, he came to me and said ‘Mum, are there other kids like me,’ and I told him that there were plenty of kids like him and he asked if we would take other kids as well.
“From there, we took on three brothers who have lived here for two years now.”
Along with her nephew, who Amanda and her partner are now the legal guardian of, and the three brothers, Amanda has two daughters and children who come in temporarily for respite care.
“We may have up to eight or nine kids in the house sometimes,” she said.
“Given that my older three are teenagers, it works really well because you have the older kids who help out the younger kids and they teach them things.
“We all just work together.”
Amanda said it was important for more locals to become foster carers so children can remain in the region and not have to be sent to Adelaide.
“There’s still a lot of children going to residential care in Adelaide unfortunately, because we just don’t have the capacity up here,” she said.
“A lot of people when they hear foster caring think it is a long-term commitment, but it doesn’t always have to be.
“You can do emergency care, where you might just have a child come in for one night or two nights, or respite care where it might be for a weekend here or there, and people can choose which they would like to do.
“While it is still a big commitment to have these children because they come in with a lot of trauma, I think the more education we get out there for people considering it to know their options the better.
“If you’re thinking about it, seek out some information. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, you don’t have to commit straight away.
“It can be quite daunting, but if you’re thinking about it get the information and go from there.”
For more information about becoming a foster carer, call 1300 2 FOSTER or visit www.fostercare.sa.gov.au.