Andrea and Kristian Fleming have seen how fast children can develop in a loving, nurturing environment, and now they’re urging others to consider becoming foster carers to help more young people thrive.
The Flemings’ home is among 1020 foster care households in South Australia – and while there has been a steady increase in carers opening their homes and lives to children, more generous individuals are needed to help combat natural carer attrition rates.
The State Government's digital advertising campaign - Foster the Feeling - encourages South Australians to consider caring and highlights that any amount of time they can give has the potential to change a child’s life – they don’t have to be a full-time carer. The campaign will launch over the coming week.
Andrea and Kristian, who are supporting the campaign, were edging towards their 50th birthdays when they did some soul searching about what they wanted the next stage of their lives to look like.
Andrea says they were watching a film featuring a character who took on the care of a child, when she realised she wanted to pursue foster care.
“We decided to dip our toe in the water and see how it worked for us, and it’s been amazing,” she says.
“When we have a baby with us, it’s hard work and I’m exhausted most of the time but I always say, ‘I can’t believe that we get to do this’.”
The couple were finalists in the Foster Carer of the Year category of Septem
ber’s SA Child Protection & Family Support Awards, which recognise those going above and beyond to support children and young people in care.
Andrea says her “absolute favourite” age of parenting was when her children, now adults, were aged under two, so the couple chose to offer emergency and short-term placements for babies and toddlers.
The couple, supported by foster care agency Anglicare, are now caring for a baby who came to them not long after birth, and they have previously cared for four other infants.
“I love how what I consider to be a little bit of nurture can get them to progress in leaps and bounds,” Andrea says.
“When our second placement came to us, we had 45 minutes’ notice of her arriving.
“She was seven months old and never had age-appropriate things, never held a toy and had never played on the floor. Her brother was five when they’d been removed, and he’d never been to a playground.
“But you see how quickly giving them those opportunities turns their lives around, and it’s just amazing.”
Andrea says children become a part of the family while they’re living at the couple’s Adelaide Hills home.
“Our daughter has played a really big part, and my Mum and Dad as well. We do dinners with them on a Tuesday night and they’ve been amazing in welcoming whoever we have, like it’s another grandchild.”
The Foster the Feeling concept seeks to capture the powerful moments in life that elicit feelings such as joy and happiness between a young person and their carer. While caring can change a child’s life for the better, it’s a heartwarming feeling also shared by carers.
Family-based care is often considered the best environment for children and young people, where there is an opportunity to build a sense of belonging and meaningful family connections.
Caring roles can be flexible and accommodate a diverse range of lifestyles and circumstances.
For as little as a few hours on a morning, afternoon, weekend or even in school holidays, a world of difference can be made in a young person’s life by providing a nurturing, safe and supportive environment.
Prospective foster carers are generally aged between 25 and 70 and can be:
- Individuals (male or female)
- Couples (including same sex couples)
- People with their own children
- People who do not have children.
For more information about becoming a carer, visit fostercare.sa.gov.au (external site) or phone 1300 2 FOSTER (1300 2 367 837).
