Association of Children's Welfare Agencies

This Sunday marks the beginning of Foster and Kinship Care Week in NSW, kicking off with the annual Sydney Picnic, hosted by My Forever Family NSW. ACWA staff will be joining member agencies in connecting with carers who extend their hearts and homes through kinship care, foster care, guardianship, or adoption from out-of-home care in NSW. 👋🏽 Come and say hello! https://lnkd.in/g7ZinDGS

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐚𝐭 𝐀𝐂𝐖𝐀 (𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧) 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐰. Featuring the latest on ACWA's IPART submission and member case studies, Family Safety Collaboration report, an abundance of sector news, plus find out about the new CCWT Step by Step self-paced course for carer assessment reviewers: https://lnkd.in/gYx__SUn

Our upcoming Coercive Control workshop facilitated by ANROWS is now at full capacity. Please join the waitlist and we will advise you on the day if spots become available: https://lnkd.in/gWE-NbfS Thank you to all who have expressed interest in discovering more about this critical issue. Keep a look for future online workshops. For those who are interested, you can watch a recording of ANROWS' presentations and in-person Coercive Control workshop from our recent Strategy to Action Day here: https://lnkd.in/gaAbvCF8

𝐀𝐂𝐖𝐀 𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 Read our statement in response to the Minster's announcement yesterday on banning the use of Alternative Care Arrangements: https://lnkd.in/eJG9DBZs

In 2022–23, approximately 180,000 Australian children under 18 came into contact with the child protection system with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children vastly over-represented in all state systems. Far too often, children and young people in child protection are at the mercy of a system that makes all the decisions for them. This Child Protection Week, we are asked to recognise that every conversation matters - children who are separated from their families and placed into child protection need us to listen to their choices and preferences and be their advocate. Last week I joined the NSW Legal Aid conference and shared a panel session with two incredible young people, Teresa and Haylie with lived experience of being in child protection. They spoke powerfully about the ways we need to ensure the choices, preferences and views of children in child protection are heard in every system and across society. This week my team shared with me the story of Hudson*, a 7 year old Aboriginal boy who repeatedly told everyone he was in contact with that he wanted to be on country with his family. Our National Transition and local teams listened to him and worked with the state child protection department and his family to help get him home. This was possible because first and foremost, our team listened to Hudson, respected his choices and his right to have a say about his own life. I have seen some incredible photos of Hudson now thriving on country with his kin. As a national child, youth and family provider, Child Protection Week is a perfect time to take a moment to understand the rights of children and recognise the most powerful thing we can do for children is to listen. #childprotectionweek2024 #everyconversationmatters #everychild #community

𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 Child Protection Week launched earlier today delivering a powerful message to all adults about the need to 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦. National Children’s Commissioner, Anne Hollonds, asked the audience to reflect on "𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒘𝒆'𝒓𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒆𝒕 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒃𝒆?" Leesa Waters, CEO of NAPCAN, reminded us that "𝑪𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒆𝒅." Watch this video produced by the team at NAPCAN to inspire us all who are working with children and young people to prioritise these essential conversations: https://lnkd.in/gqVsmBB3

𝐀𝐂𝐖𝐀 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐚𝐢𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭 ACWA CCWT Learning and Development Project Manager, Jo Roach, met with 20 delegates from the 𝐇𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐟𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐬 𝐀𝐝𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐚𝐢𝐰𝐚𝐧, and an Associate Professor from the 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐚𝐢𝐰𝐚𝐧 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲, this week to discuss ACWA's role as a peak body in NSW, how social services broadly operate in Australia, plus learn more about our suite of foster care and relative kinship training and assessment tools, Step by Step and Shared Lives. https://lnkd.in/g_acSD96 It was a pleasure to spend an afternoon with this enthusiastic group of colleagues, sharing knowledge and insights. Thank you for visiting ACWA!

𝐉𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐮𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐩 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐍𝐑𝐎𝐖𝐒 𝐚𝐬 𝐰𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥 𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞. Following ANROWS' sessions at our recent Strategy to Action Day, we're glad to welcome the team back to facilitate an online workshop and discussion with ACWA members via Zoom. You'll have the opportunity to collaborate and participate in discussions with colleagues from across the child and family sector. Register here: https://lnkd.in/gWE-NbfS

This week, the Government of New South Wales (NSW Government) announced its commitment to supporting NSW Public Sector employees who are foster carers by revising parental leave arrangements. The new policy allows foster carers to access up to 16 weeks of paid leave, providing them with crucial time to help children settle into their new environments.   Changes like this deserve recognition not only within the department but across the entire sector, as this is a shift many have been advocating for over the years. With this announcement, NSW joins Victoria in setting a precedent. However, there is still more to be done. We need to see similar leadership across all states and territories, ensuring that public servants who are foster carers have access to adequate parental leave support.   But why stop there? Imagine the impact of corporate organisations also taking the lead in this area.   The Hon Kate Washington MP, Minister for Families and Communities, and Minister for Disability Inclusion emphasised the urgent need for carers when announcing these changes in NSW, but this is not an isolated problem. Across the country, the number of foster care households has either remained static or decreased in most jurisdictions. And to make matters worse, the number exiting the system is increasing.   Additional support like paid parental leave is just one piece of a puzzle to remove barriers for people considering becoming a carer or remaining a carer. The National Foster Care Sustainability Group envisions a future where every child in foster care experiences a healthy, sustainable, and supportive family home. We are dedicated to advocating for much-needed reforms in a foster care system currently in crisis. Introducing paid parental leave for foster carers is a positive step forward, but we must also ensure adequate access to funding for the medical and therapeutic needs of children and young people. Additionally, providing tax allowances and superannuation benefits is crucial for securing the future of foster care and the wellbeing of children. Highlighting the need for change is a vital part of this important journey, but we also need leaders in the private sector to join us in making a difference. Adopt Change, Anglicare Victoria, Australian Foster Care Association, Centre for Excellence in Child & Family Welfare, Connecting Foster & Kinship Carers SA Inc, Families Australia, Key Assets (Australia), Life Without Barriers, MacKillop Family Services, OzChild, PeakCare Queensland, SNAICC - National Voice for our Children & the First Nations NGO Alliance representation.

𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 - 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐅𝐀𝐂𝐒𝐈𝐀𝐑'𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐛𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐫 In this webinar, Dr Paul Gray and Ash Wright, the authors of the paper titled: “Attachment and the (mis)apprehension of Aboriginal children: epistemic violence in child welfare interventions” will speak on their thoughts and findings about the misapplication of Western developmental constructs such as attachment theory on Aboriginal children. Register here: https://lnkd.in/esxXfeQR