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ATTACHMENT A
1.Introduction
In July-August 2013 the Community Services Directorate conducted a survey of kinship carers and a survey of foster carers. The surveys were designed to answer the following questions:
- Who are our carers?
- What supports do carers need?
- Are carers getting enough training and the right training?
- What are carers’ intentions to continue care?
Strenuous efforts were made to engage carers to complete the survey. The surveys were emailed to all carers and a hardcopy was also posted to all carers. In addition, the Foster Care Association posted the survey on their website, copies were available at the Ministerial carer roundtable held in August and foster care agencies and the Kinship Care Support Team encouraged individual carers to participate.
The survey went to all current kinship carers with at least one child on orders where the Director-general exercises full or shared Parental Responsibility as well as foster carers with a current General Parental Authority(approval to be a foster carer) who had had a child in their care within the past two years This included those carers living interstate.
Notably, ACT carers with Enduring Parental Responsibility were not included in the study. These carers continue to receive a subsidy for the child in their care but are not subject to case management and are expected to operate independently in exercising decision making powers in relation to the child.
A total of 41 kinship carers out of 167 completed the survey and 101 foster carers responded out of 131 which represented a response rate of just under 25% for kinship carers and 77% for foster carers. A lower response from kinship carers is consistent with other surveys of carers; however given fewer than one in four kinship carers responded, the results cannot be generalised to the wider population of kinship carers.
The survey used web-based Grapevine Survey technology and results were analysed by the Community Services Directorate’s Data Unit.
Separate survey instruments were used to target the two carer groups as the pathways to being a carer are different and the organisational arrangements to support kinship carers and foster carers differ in the ACT. ACT kinship carers are supported by Care and Protection Services and ACT foster carers are supported by non-government agencies. Consequently, survey results are presented separately for kinship carers and foster carers.
2.Foster Carer Survey Results
Response Rate
101 foster carers responded out of 131 which represented a response rate of 77% for foster carers.
Age
Unsurprisingly, most foster carers are in their thirties through to the mid fifties, but around a quarter are aged between 55 and 74 suggesting that there will be significant ageing out of the foster carer workforce over the coming decade.
Gender/Sex
Four out of five respondents to this survey were female carers.
Aboriginality
Two carers identified as Aboriginal and one as Torres Strait Islander.
Cultural Diversity
The great majority of foster carers are born in Australia (81%) with the remainder largely born in English speaking overseas countries. Six foster carers nominated European countries as their birthplace – Germany, Italy and Norway.
Just under ten percent of foster carers responded in the affirmative to the question of whether they identified with any other culture or group. Five identified with European cultures; one with the USA and four respondents identified as lesbian, gay, transsexual, bisexual and intersex.
All foster carers report English is the language spoken at home.
Marital Status
The majority of foster carers are either married or partnered (74%).
Household Composition
Just over half of all foster carers have children of their own, stepchildren or children subject to adoption or EPR orders living at home.
Only a small number of households have six or more residents.
Educational Status
ACT foster carers are a well educated cohort with much higher levels of educational attainment than the Australian population as a whole. Fifty seven percent have a Bachelor or postgraduate degree compared to 25% of adult Australians.
Eighteen foster carers are studying currently, the great majority on a part time basis.
Field of Study
Interestingly, half of all foster carer respondents (44 of 88) who nominated their field of study had studied social work, psychology, nursing, education, child care, policing and the like, suggesting that these courses or occupations are fertile potential recruiting grounds for foster carers.
Employment Status
Seventy seven percent of carers rely on salary and wages for their income. Ten percent rely on a government pension or benefit with the remainder reliant on a business, investments or superannuation.
Income
Over half of respondents reported earning the same or less than full time adult weekly earnings ($1645.10 per week). Almost 40% of respondents work part time or on a casual basis, although it is likely that many have partners who are employed. It may have been more useful to ask about household income as the majority of respondents are female and partnered.
Health
Almost all foster carers report having good to excellent health, with only four reporting fair health and none poor health.
Time as a Carer
A third of carers have been caring for between four and a half and nine years. Almost another third have only been carers for two or less years, with 14% in their first year. Four carers have cared for over two decades.
Respondents were able to indicate multiple motivations in response to the question “What motivated you to become a carer?” and it is not possible to discern the relative strength of drivers. Clearly helping others, particularly children, is a key motivator for the large majority of respondents. The desire to create or extend a family is also another important factor at 31% of respondents, with 17.2% specifically identifying infertility as a factor. Only 7% identified that “the subsidy helps me financially” is a motivation.
Free text comments also reveal a mix of intrinsic motivations, such as doing something together with a partner or enjoying spending time with children, and motivation arising from observations of the need for carers to assist children.
Motivation To Continue As A Carer
Carers were asked “What is your motivation for continuing to provide foster care?” Two primary motivations can be discerned from the responses. One set of responses pertains to satisfaction in making a difference for children through the carer role (around 80% of respondents) and a second around love for the foster child (72.9% of respondents) or the joy of creating a family (42.7%).
Intention to Remain A Carer
Foster carer respondents were asked how much longer they planned to provide foster care. Fifty four percent responded that they had no plans to cease foster care and a further 13% indicated an intention to see their current child/ren or young person/s through to maturity. Almost 7% intend to exit foster care within twelve months.
Reasons for Exiting Foster Care
Carers were also asked for a reason if they were not planning to remain a foster carer. A number of responses highlighted change in carer circumstances, including ageing, or the fact that current fostered children require an ongoing commitment.
Thirteen of the 24 responses provided reasons for not continuing related to the difficulties presented by the child or of dealing with Care and Protection Services or with the foster care agency.
Do Foster Carers Encourage Others To Become Carers?
Seventy nine percent of foster carers encourage others to become a foster carer.
Type of Placement Provided
We know from experience that many carers are very flexible and accept a variety of placement types. This is borne out by responses to the question “What type of placement do you provide?”. Notably, many carers are available for long term placements (45%) and 30% are available for Enduring Parental Responsibility placements or adoption. Of the 45 carers who provide long term placements 36 carers were willing to care for a child on an Enduring Parental Responsibility Order whilst 9 carers would not.
Changes in Placement Type
Carers were asked if they had changed the type of care they offer. Forty two percent responded in the affirmative. A range of reasons were given but it is clear from a reading of the free text responses that the main drivers of change are the willingness of many carers to respond to unmet need and attachments that develop to individual children.
Number of Children Currently Placed
Around half of respondents are caring for one child only. Just over ten percent are caring for three or more children.
Largest Number of Children Cared For At One Time
Around half of the carers have only cared for either one or two children at a time. Another quarter have cared for up to three children at a time at a time. Twelve carers have cared for five or more children at one time. These results highlight the difficulty in finding carers who are available to care for large sibling groups.
Carers were asked about the number of children in total that they had cared for over time. Almost half of the respondents had cared for five or fewer children and young people in total, with one-quarter having had exposure over time to only one or two children. A small group of carers (8) has cared for in excess of 30 children and young people in total.
Continuation of Support to Care Leavers
Thirty four respondents answered the question “If you have cared for a young person who has turned 18 years and left the care system, do you still support the young person in any way? Sixteen (47%) responded in the affirmative. Free text commentary suggests varied forms and intensity of continuing support ranging from the child being regarded as a family member to sporadic requests for assistance.
Enduring Parental Responsibility
Carers were asked if they would consider pursuing an Enduring Parental Responsibilityorder? A resounding 68.7% said yes.
Support for Foster Carers
Foster carers were asked whether they receive enough support from their foster care agency. Most foster carers responded in the affirmative (70.8%).
Changing Agencies
Carers were asked if they had ever changed foster care agency. Seventeen percent responded in the affirmative.
Training Needs
Most carers reported that they were satisfied or very satisfied with the amount of training they had received since becoming a carer.
Of a number of possible areas for additional training those that rated highest pertained to responding to the behaviour and needs of their child – “Specialist advice on my child or young person’s needs” ranked highest at 65.9% of respondents, “Response to trauma in children and young people” second at 63.4% and “Behaviour management” and “Encouraging protective behaviours” equal third at 59.8%.
Of those who had been a carer before 2007, 28 of 52 reported having completed Positive Futures, Caring Together training, with 24 of the 28 reporting it did provide them with skills and knowledge for their caring role.
Kinship Carer Survey Results
Response Rate
A total of 41 kinship carers out of 167 completed the survey which represented a response rate of just under 25 % for kinship carers. As a consequence of the relatively low response rate, the survey results cannot be generalised to the wider population of kinship carers. This is confirmed by a comparison of the demographic data of respondents to data on kinship carers held by the Directorate.
Age
Almost half of kinship carer respondents are aged 55 and over and almost one in five are in the 65-74 age bracket.
Gender/Sex
The great majority of respondents to this survey were female kinship carers with only five males out of 40 respondents.
Aboriginality
Three kinship carers identified as Aboriginal.
Cultural Diversity
The great majority of kinship carer respondents are born in Australia (87.2%). One carer identified as American, one as Norwegian and one as Dutch.
Marital Status
The majority of kinship carer respondents are either married or partnered (66%).
Household Composition
Almost 70% of all kinship carer respondents have children of their own, stepchildren or children subject to adoption or EPR orders living at home. This is a higher rate than for foster carers.
Only a small number of households have six or more residents. Three household members is the most common size at 37.5%.
Educational Status
ACT kinship carers who responded to this survey are a well educated cohort with much higher levels of educational attainment than the Australian population as a whole. Forty six percent have a Bachelor or postgraduate degree compared to 25% of adult Australians. Kinship carer respondents have studied in a wide range of fields. A significant number, 13 out of 30 who nominated a field of study, have studied in human services or health fields.
Employment Status
Slightly over half (56.5%) of kinship carer respondents rely on salary and wages for their income. 12.2% rely on a government pension or benefit and almost twenty percent rely on superannuation with the remainder reliant on a business or investments.
Income
Three quarters of respondents reported earning less than full time average adult weekly earnings ($1645.10 per week). Only nine respondents work full time. Another seventeen work casually or part time. It may have been more useful to ask about household income as the majority of respondents are female and many are partnered. Thirty percent report trouble paying a bill during the past three months, a higher proportion than foster carers.
Health
Most kinship carer respondents report having good to excellent health, with only three reporting fair health and one poor health.
Relationship to Child in Care
The majority of kinship carer respondents to this survey are grandparents (62.5%). A further 17.5% were an aunt or uncle.
Motivation for Becoming a Kinship Carer
Anecdotally kinship carers often report that they felt that they had little choice but to accept kinship care responsibilities when they were proposed by Care and Protection Services. Just over a quarter of kinship carer respondents to this survey marked“feeling obligated” as a motivation, however an alternative choice of “Family ties and obligations” also attracted 75.6% of respondents. These findings suggest there is perhaps little sense of choice for many kinship carers.
Barriers
Kinship carers were asked what barriers they had faced as a kinship carer. Around a third of respondents identified with each of the potential barriers presented, except for “not enough support from kinship care agency”. Very few kinship carers are being supported by a foster care agency currently.
Support for Kinship Carers
Kinship carers were asked to rank the supports that assist them in their carer role. Not surprisingly, informal supports from family and friends are rated most highly by kinship care respondents.
Kinship carers were asked specifically if they received enough support from Care and Protection Services. As background to this question, it should be noted that CPS has improved support for kinship carers during the last two years by creating a Kinship Care Support Team whose role is to support carers (separately to the role of caseworker for the child which is held by another officer) in the same way that foster care agencies support foster carers. More than half of the kinship carer respondents rated CPS as supportive or very supportive - six carers (of 40) rated CPS as very supportive and a further 20 rated CPS as supportive.
Some kinship carers are very clear that they prefer to manage any challenges themselves and feel capable of doing so.
Kinship carers were also asked if there was anything else they needed to support them. The twelve free text responses included access to financial planning, access to a part time job, help with building extensions to accommodate the extra residents, ease of access to respite, improved information resources for kinship carers and a brochure that kinship carers could give to family or friends. Several responses referred to the need for more continuity and responsiveness from caseworkers.
Training
Kinship carers were asked if they had received any training to assist them in their role as a carer. Only 30% responded in the affirmative.
Kinship carers were asked what training they would like more of. The most common responses clustered around two themes, one concerning child behaviour management/ responding to trauma in children/ specialist advice on their child’s needs and the second concerning greater knowledge of the child protection system.
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