Kinship care, no child's play for older relatives

AT 54, Lynne Edwards became a mother again - to three of her grandchildren. Jordan, 8, was already spending weekdays with grandma when his mother asked Ms Edwards to come and get his four-year-old twin sisters, Ebony-Rose and Tahlia. That was eight months ago, and now the Edwards have permanent custody of all three while their mother struggles with drug addiction.

By InvestSMART · 2 Dec 2011

By InvestSMART ·
2 Dec 2011

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AT 54, Lynne Edwards became a mother again to three of her grandchildren. Jordan, 8, was already spending weekdays with grandma when his mother asked Ms Edwards to come and get his four-year-old twin sisters, Ebony-Rose and Tahlia. That was eight months ago, and now the Edwards have permanent custody of all three while their mother struggles with drug addiction.

"I've got these little children for the long haul," said Ms Edwards. "I explain that mummy loves them but she isn't able to look after them . . . I think these children understand a lot more than we give them credit for."

Ms Edwards and her husband Mark have cancelled their retirement plans and sunk their savings into the children they'll raise for another two decades.

"I don't know how older grandparents do it," Ms Edwards said. "When you get children that come from addicted families, you get all the baggage, you get all the trauma."

Without the specialist kinship care classes offered by foster care agencies Anglicare and Anchor, Ms Edwards says: "I couldn't have stayed sane and coped with all their little needs."

It's an increasingly common story. The number of state wards being cared for by relatives now 2395 by the end of the 2010-2011 financial year outstrips those in foster care by more than a third.

Around 60 per cent of children coming into child protection are in kinship care, as it is called.

While many families struggle with kinship care, Aboriginal families are under the greatest pressure, warns a new report from the Office of the Child Safety Commissioner.

"The acute unmet support needs of kinship carers are nowhere seen as vividly as in the Aboriginal community, where larger numbers of children are being cared for by carers living in straitened circumstances," says the Family Links report by Melbourne University Professor Cathy Humphreys and researcher Meredith Kiraly.

Child protection workers "don't tend to take into consideration the welfare of the kinship families," said an Aboriginal family member interviewed for the report. "So, frequently, unfortunately, because the family won't say no, they take on extra children and they put their own family at risk of falling apart as well."

Family tensions were rife across the system, the report said, especially when dealing with the parents. "Regular parental contact is not always desirable," notes the report.

"More energy needs to be put into facilitating other family relationships that are important for children."

Kinship carers "struggle against their ageing, financial difficulties, ill health and other hardships," said Child Safety Commissioner Bernie Geary at the report's launch.

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Frequently Asked Questions about this Article…

What is kinship care and how does it differ from foster care?

Kinship care is when relatives — often grandparents — become the primary carers for children who are state wards or have been removed from their parents. Unlike traditional foster care, kinship care keeps children within their extended family. The article notes that kinship care now accounts for around 60% of children entering the child protection system.

How common is kinship care in Australia?

Kinship care has grown substantially: by the end of the 2010–2011 financial year there were 2,395 state wards being cared for by relatives, a figure that outstrips the number in foster care by more than a third. Around 60% of children coming into child protection are now placed with family carers.

What financial impact does taking on kinship care have on older relatives?

The financial impact can be significant. The article describes a grandmother who cancelled her retirement plans and used her savings to raise three grandchildren, expecting to care for them for decades. The Family Links report also highlights that kinship carers struggle with ageing, financial difficulties, ill health and other hardships.

What support services are available to help kinship carers cope?

Some foster care agencies run specialist kinship care programs — the article cites Anglicare and Anchor providing kinship care classes that helped a grandmother manage day-to-day needs. However, the article and the Family Links report stress there are acute unmet support needs for kinship carers overall.

Are Aboriginal families particularly affected by pressures around kinship care?

Yes. The Family Links report (by Professor Cathy Humphreys and Meredith Kiraly) warns that Aboriginal families face the greatest pressure: larger numbers of children are cared for by relatives who often live in straitened circumstances, and the unmet support needs are most vivid in the Aboriginal community.

What family tensions and challenges do kinship carers typically face?

Kinship carers frequently deal with trauma carried by children from addicted or troubled families, ongoing contact with parents that isn’t always desirable, and tensions within the wider family. The report notes carers sometimes take on extra children to avoid saying no, which can put their own families at risk of falling apart.

Who produced the report on kinship care and what are its key messages?

The Family Links report was produced by Melbourne University Professor Cathy Humphreys and researcher Meredith Kiraly and was launched by the Office of the Child Safety Commissioner. Key messages include the growing reliance on kinship care, the acute unmet support needs of carers (especially in Aboriginal communities), and the need for more effort to facilitate important family relationships for children.

How long might kinship care arrangements last and what does that mean for carers?

Kinship care is often long-term. The article shares a personal case where a grandmother expects to raise her grandchildren for another two decades and describes it as 'the long haul.' That long-term commitment can affect retirement plans, savings and carers’ health and wellbeing.