FOSTER CARE IS LABOUR OF LOVE

FOSTER care inquiries have surged since COVID-19.

Key Assets NSW said foster care inquiries were up by almost 30 per cent from January to September compared to the same time last year.

The company has received and responded to over 2300 inquiries for foster care and met individually with hundreds of households to discuss becoming foster parents.

While caring for kids is never easy, disability worker Tara Graves was up for the challenge and is a loving foster parent to a nineyear-old girl who was unable to live with her birth mother.

“We have a very close attachment,” Ms Graves said, who has cared for the girl since she was six. “She refers to me as her ‘heart mum’ and we refer to her biological mother as her ‘tummy mum’. We work on a memory book together so she understands why she’s in care.”

The young girl’s behaviour can be testing but the personal rewards are so great that she plans to be a foster carer for many years to come.

“You get a great sense of satisfaction giving a child love and care when their family is facing difficulties,” she said of the child who cannot be named for welfare reasons.

“This is probably the most powerful way you can make an impact in improving your community — through just investing in one child.”

Ms Graves has been recognised for her efforts by fostering agency Key Assets, who have nominated her for News Corp Australia’s Thanks A Million campaign.

“If people have ever thought about being a carer before, then now is the time,” said Key Assets executive director Jamie Hodgson.

It’s estimated that there are more than 45,000 children in need of care across Australia.