Vol. No. Vol. 2818No. 1227
Horsham District Premiers’ Posters!
INSIDE TODAY
FREE PUBLICATION
A FREE PUBLICATION FROM YOUR LOCAL RADIO STATIONS 3WM AND MIXXFM
Wednesday, January 17, 13, 2025 2016 Wednesday, September
SUPERIOR SEASONS: Wimmera league best and fairest winners Ben Taylor, of Ararat, awarded the senior football Toohey Medal, and Horsham Saints’ Ashlee Grace, with her second Hatcher Medal after an outstanding A Grade netball season, will both play in this Saturday’s grand finals. Stories and photographs on award winners and grand final previews, pages 48-51. Picture: PAUL CARRACHER
Foster care shortage BY LAUREN HENRY
W
ith just 20 foster carers in the Wimmera, Uniting VicTas has issued a plea for people to open their homes to children in need.
The number of foster carers across the region has reached a critical low, while the number of children and young people needing care has increased. The callout comes during Victoria’s Foster Care Week, from Sunday to Saturday, which is an annual celebration recognising the role of foster carers in supporting children and young people. This year’s theme ‘Time to Care’ celebrates the valuable time that foster carers dedicate to supporting children and young people and celebrates how much each moment matters. Findings from the Cube Group’s
Economic Value of Foster Care report shows foster care not only transforms the lives of children, but also delivers more than $600-million in value to Victoria each year. Carers contribute more than $400-million in volunteer time annually and save governments more than $200-million by preventing highercost placements. Uniting Vic-Tas senior carer support and intake worker Bianca Thurau said there were fewer foster carers now than there used to be, and more children needing care. “We’ve always needed more carers, but the gap between how many children need safe and nurturing homes and how many carers are available is getting bigger, so the need is more urgent than ever,” she said. “More children are coming into care because there’s been an increase in
reports of situations where kids aren’t safe at home. “On top of that, challenges like housing issues, mental health struggles, and substance use are putting more families under pressure, which means more children need temporary homes. “We’re also finding that children are staying in care longer because their situations are more complex, which means fewer carers are available for new placements. “All of this adds up to a real and growing need for more people in our community to consider becoming foster carers.” Ms Thurau said the need for more foster carers was a statewide issue. “The number has been going down over the past few years. In our region, we’d ideally like to find at least 15 to 20 new carers to help meet the
growing need, possibly even more,” she said. The various types of foster care includes weekend respite – occasional or regularly scheduled; emergency care – in response to a child’s safety; short-term care – a few days to a few months; and long-term care – for many months or years. Uniting community engagement officer – Wimmera Jules Del Real said a campaign to recruit more carers was timed to coincide with Foster Care Week. She said people can be single or have a partner, have children or no children, be working, studying or be retired, and be of any culture, religion or sexual orientation. “If from all this campaign we can get three more, that’s a win,” she said. “We want to break down the myths surrounding it – people might not be
aware that it can be just one weekend every month, or it can be two months a year, and the rest of the year, then they don’t do it – there are a lot of options. We’ll match whatever suits your lifestyle.” People interested can firstly call 1800 929 181 to enquire about being a foster carer, where they can ask questions and then an information pack will be sent to them. Ms Del Real said a Wimmerabased Uniting staff member would then make contact, and if the application progressed then working with children, police and medical checks, along with other paperwork, would be required. Carers then need to complete online training and go through the final assessment and approval phase, which can take between six and 12 months. • Carers’ stories, pages 14-15.
IN THIS ISSUE • Councils explore alliance • Murtoa school to close • Hockey grand finals Phone: 03 5382 1351 Read it online: www.theweeklyadvertiser.com.au
21,505 COPIES DISTRIBUTED EACH WEEK (average)
School Holiday FUN $4 craft - Monday to Friday, Sept 22-26 Monday—Lizard Door Knob
Thursday— Wood Rainbow
Tuesday—Woven Mats
AFL Friday—Wood Mask
Wednesday—Colour Flamingo
ALSO craft week two holidays
11am to 3pm daily
KMART SPOTLIGHT REJECT SHOP BEST & LESS WIDE RANGE OF SPECIALTY STORES WWW.HORSHAMPLAZA.COM.AU