Who might be on your care team?
Your local care team
There are a variety of people from LWB who might form part of your local care team helping to keep children safe. Local care teams can change based on the needs of children at a given time.
Interactions undertaken by all staff, every day, with carers are explicitly to support the supervision of carers with a focus on child safety.
You will be introduced to various members of your local care team when you become a carer, when a new child comes into your care, when you attend training or engage in other carer related activities.
People outside LWB who might be part of your care team
Child protection authorities
Child protection and out of home care is a state and territory statutory responsibility. Almost all children in care are in the legal care of the relevant state or territory child protection statutory authority – often referred to as the Department. Statutory authorities have ultimate responsibility for children in care.
In most states and territories the main decision maker for children in care is the relevant statutory authority who works with us, children’s families and other stakeholders. Life Without Barriers does a lot of the casework that informs decision making, makes some decisions and makes recommendations to the relevant government department.
The statutory Department for child protection authority in your state and their staff members, often called case managers, are important members of the care team.
In New South Wales, we have more decision making authority for children in our care. This is because NSW FACS has a policy to transfer case management to agencies. We still need to work closely with NSW FACS to make significant decisions and to inform them of children’s progress.
Children’s courts
Children’s courts make decisions about children’s care and protection, including who is responsible for their care. Courts make the decisions to remove guardianship or care from children’s families. Ask about the decisions the court has made or is considering for children in your care. You can be given relevant court orders or letters of authority. You may need these to interact with schools and other places.
External monitors
Life Without Barriers and our carers are monitored by external regulators such as Children’s Guardian’s and Ombudsman agencies.
You can read more about external monitors here
Others
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and children from culturally and linguistically diverse communities will need to connect with culturally appropriate groups, activities, elders and events.
Some children are involved with other agencies because of their special needs. For example, children may be getting services through the NDIS.
You can read more about the NDIS here
All children in care have the same needs and rights as other Australian children and will be accessing a range of services and institutions such as sporting clubs and cultural organisations.