Specialist reunification foster care: A care team approach around trauma, attachment and supporting children to return home

Foster care is a key element of Australia's child protection system. If a child's safety is threatened, they are removed from their families and placed under the guardianship of the chief executive in a care setting (guardianship order). In South Australia, the rate of children and young people entering the ‘In Care’ system has been increasing. As of 31 May 2024, the South Australian Department for Child Protection (DCP) reported that 4874 (0.4% increase from 2023) children and young people were on guardianship orders. In addition to the increase, there continues to be an overrepresentation of Aboriginal children and young people in care (37.4%) due to the ongoing impacts of intergenerational trauma because of colonisation and the Stolen Generation. The increase in children in care has placed immense pressure on the child protection system. Research indicates the best place for children to be is with their families. Centacare Foster Care, while supporting all care types, has a specialist reunification model (SRM). This model, the topic of this paper, incorporates a care team approach, informed by Centacare's stabilising trauma in everyday practice (STEP) framework. The SRM which starts from recruitment has been key in ensuring children and young people maintain positive connection with their family and return home safely, resulting in the successful reunifications. This model has seen a 67% success rate in reunifications, well above the 48% success rate nationally. Importantly, this model has seen a 65.5% success rate in reunifications of Aboriginal children between the years 2022 and 2024, which is well above the national reunification rate of 7.6%. This paper, written by Centacare's specialist reunification foster care team, outlines some of the key features of the model and broader program, from recruitment to reunification.