Foster Care

Becoming a foster carer can be one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of your life. Foster care is providing a safe and loving environment for a child or young person who is unable to live at home. Foster care can be for just a few nights, a period of weeks or months, or for many years. Foster carers are needed to provide respite, short-term or long-term care. 

CareSouth foster carers are everyday people. They are young couples, same sex couples, single people, have children of their own, or are retired. They live in their own homes and they also rent. Foster carers can work part-time, full-time or be at home and come from a range of cultural, religious and ethnically diverse backgrounds.

Providing our foster carers with an extraordinary level of support, training and information, continues to be our focus. We look after foster carers, so they can look after the people that need it most. This includes an in-house clinical team (to help with managing behaviours and emotions) and a phone line available 24/7 for foster carers to call if they need support. 

A stable home, predictable routine and foster carers who set firm but loving boundaries can make a huge difference in the life of a child.

Aunties & Uncles

When a child’s having a tough time, a positive influence can make a huge difference and this program does just that. Aunties & Uncles supports vulnerable children between three and 12-years old and their families by connecting them with a volunteer carer who becomes a mentor and role model to the young person. The program is offered in the Illawarra, Shoalhaven and Eurobodalla regions of NSW. 

NDIS and Disability Services 

CareSouth is a provider of choice and NDIS Partner. Individuals and families living with disability deal with big, everyday challenges. At CareSouth, we work towards supporting people with their challenges, so they can live full and meaningful lives. The organisation provides NDIS plan management, clinical services, community participation and supported independent living. 

Clincial Services

CareSouth’s Clinical Services team provides psychology and family support services, occupational therapy and behaviour support planning to those CareSouth supports in all regions. 

CareDogs is CareSouth’s animal-assisted therapy program which provides therapeutic support and companionship to children, young people, families and people with disability. Whether it’s sitting with them during a therapy session or bringing a smile to their face after a tough day, CareDogs are there when needed to induce calmness and safety. 

Shoalhaven Youth Support Services

Shoalhaven Youth Support Service (SYSS) offers support to young people who are either struggling to stay at home, or are experiencing homelessness. Our priority is to work with young people to facilitate the restoration of relationships and to identify individual needs of each young person to enable stability in their housing situations. SYSS strives to empower young people with the skills and knowledge to be resilient and learn how to reach out for support when needed.

Family Connections

Families going through separation or Family Court proceedings experience a range of challenges that can significantly impact their children. CareSouth’s Family Connections program provides a safe, secure and neutral environment for visits to occur between children, their parents and other significant people in their lives. We work together with families to ensure visits are child focused, positive and rewarding for all parties involved. 

A Family Connections worker remains with the family during the whole visit.

Family Preservation

Parenting is never easy. In some situations, it can be particularly challenging for both the parent and the child. Sometimes extra help is all that’s needed to prevent family problems from getting bigger.

Family Preservation supports families through tough circumstances like domestic violence, mental health issues or drug and alcohol problems. It also helps parents struggling to bring up their child or children without support. From learning difficulties to behavioural issues, the program helps parents give their child the best possible start in life.

SafeCare