Carer stories

“We were in the car and I heard them in the back laughing together. And it wasn’t until that moment…

Patricia is a kinship carer for four siblings with whom she shares a bond as unique as they each are.   …

Nes grew up knowing the love and kindness of her Turkish Muslim parents who informally welcomed children into their care….

Barbara has accomplished a lot in her lifetime. She’s a registered nurse, natural therapist, aromatherapist, reflexologist and an educator with…

Cameron relished his freedom as a single man travelling the country and was surprised to find settling down and opening…

Two decades of marriage and memories have been enriched with foster caring for Kate and Andrew who have been named…

Kerrie-Anne was an early childhood educator for 25 years before one little boy changed the trajectory of her and her…

Michelle and Marc started their journey as registered foster carers four years ago and have dedicated themselves to improving the…

Shauna has been a registered carer for over 4 years. She is experienced in restorative care, short-term, part-time, emergency and…

Susan has been a registered carer of children and young people for nearly three decades. She provides a variety of…

Lesley raised five of her own children and when she gave birth to her youngest child she decided to move…

Growing up in England Beth learned early on about the impactful and important work providing care to children without permanent…

Jenny has been a carer for over 14 years and the many small triumphs have added up to a huge…

The two and a half years that Ronnie* has cared for now 13-year-old Kaisey and her younger brothers Rory and…

Driven by their dream of having a big family like the ones they were raised in, Carly and her husband…

Mel and Kate have cared for 10 children since they first started out as emergency carers. Both working full time…

Shauna is a wise and understanding carer who loves the connections she makes with families. She is the guardian of…

Julie has been an emergency and part-time carer since 2016 and had around 50 children through her doors. She enjoys…

Small business owners Mark Vanderweyde and his partner, Chris, had long held the mistaken belief that being gay meant they…

The day that a little boy reached out to hold her hand for the very first time, melted Carmen Gould’s…

I am a teacher and seven years ago a student in my class was taken into care. He was removed…

As a semi-retired empty nester, Margi Garretty could happily be looking forward to some “down” time at this stage in…

Carer and author Penny Jaye has engaged her literary talents, to share a beautifully unique insight into the experience of…

Carers for less than a year, Kate and Ryan always knew they wanted to build a family and they were…

My husband and I had always thought about fostering and my sister-in-law told us about an event where they were…

Victoria recalls always having a ‘full life’ – a career in engineering, combined with caring for her ageing parents and…

Kylie and Darren Pitt consider themselves blessed, with two foster children placed with them within less than a week of…

Sue and husband Neil Coutts have fostered over 60 children in 26 years, and have a strong desire to support…

As a police officer in the children’s court, I’d seen plenty of kids who needed out-of-home care. Countless little ones…

Watching TV soap ‘Home and Away’ as a 10-year-old seeing Pippa and Tom take in displaced and needy kids helped…

Caring for kids was always a part of our plan – but no plan can prepare you for the unimaginable…

Connie cares for seven children – she is a single mum and a grandparent. I became a foster carer in…

Sarah has been the sole carer for her four grandchildren for many years. She told My Forever Family about the…

I have been fostering for 40 odd years.  I do not number my children, they all have names, so how…

My foster daughter Zoe came to live with me almost a year after I made my decision to become a…