Summary of Recommendations

Recommendation 1

That a National approach on foster care including Indigenous and kinship care be developed as a cooperative venture by the Commonwealth and State/Territory Governments and peak community organisations directly involved in foster care.

Recommendation 2

That Commonwealth and State/Territory Governments work with and involve the State and National associations of foster carers and help fund their support at a sufficient level to enable them to support carers and provide a consultative forum for ongoing policy consultation.

Recommendation 3

That all governments and non-government organisations commit to working together to present the community with a contemporary view of foster care and increase community recognition and support.

Recommendation 4

That the Commonwealth and States/Territories establish a policy on statistical recording of information pertinent to foster care, including the national collection of statistics related to allegations of abuse, and initiate a national collection process.

Recommendation 5

That the Commonwealth and State/Territory Governments initiate a national approach for the recruitment, training and accreditation of foster carers including those providing kinship care.

Recommendation 6

That the Commonwealth and State/Territory Governments address the issues of providing full costs of foster care so that the combination of State and Commonwealth support is sufficient to fully recompense the cost foster carers experience in providing appropriate care for children and young people.

Recommendation 7

That along with standards advocating respite care for foster carers, conditions be altered so that provision for fully supported respite care is available to carers and is included in all case planning.

Recommendation 8

That the State/Territory governments develop ways of supporting foster carers to reduce instances of allegations of abuse in care and develop processes for handling allegations against foster carers. This should be encouraged and facilitated by the Commonwealth government because of its interest in the longer term outcomes of children, and in a manner similar to the leadership role adopted by the Commonwealth when addressing long-term homeless, juvenile justice, and carer issues.

Recommendation 9

That a national approach to the handling of allegations of abuse be developed so that the inequities of the current systems be removed and notified foster carers receive recognition and support until such time as the allegations are substantiated.

Recommendation 10

That a programme evaluation of foster care provision be undertaken at both Commonwealth and State/Territory levels to provide accountability to the Australian community of the resources committed to foster care.

Recommendation 11

That a joint government representative body, such as the Commonwealth and State Ministers Advisory Council (CSMAC), be given responsibility for preparing and implementing a set of standards to apply specifically to foster care in place of the current national baseline out-of-home care standards.

Recommendation 12

That as part of any overall review of foster care in Australia, the possible benefits of the Alberta classification system be examined for potential application in Australia.

Recommendation 13

That revision of the structures, processes and practices concerning allegations of abuse in care in Australia, be revised so that they reflect standards and practice that are nearer to the good practice standards pertaining in Alberta, Canada.

Recommendation 14

That governments commission and/or fund appropriate research into foster care as a means of further development of foster care in Australia.

Recommendation 15

That the Commonwealth and State Ministers Advisory Council (CSMAC) host a round table for representatives of peak national bodies predominantly involved in foster care, along with senior Commonwealth and State/Territory representatives, to discuss the recommendations of this report and to plan for action to occur.