Anglicare Victoria (AV) and its foundation organisations have a long history of caring for children and young people on behalf of the state and their parents. Now 25 years later, on any given night, AV has over 700 children and young people in our care.

The work we do would not be possible without our wonderful 998 foster carers and 314 kinship carers. These incredible people welcome children and young people into their homes and provide love and support to them when their own families are not able to.

“Historically the organisation chose caring for children as the most important contribution it could make to the Victorian community,” says AV CEO Paul McDonald. “AV has taken that beginning and accepted the challenge: We want to be the best provider of care for children in the care system.”

AV has grown to become Victoria’s leading provider of Out-of-Home Care (OoHC). The agency has high aspirations for the young people paired with its foster carers, in kinship care arrangements or living in residential care homes.

AV is a passionate provider of care – refining and improving existing models of care to ensure the best possible start to life for every child and young person rest assured, for the next 25 years, the organisation will continue to advocate strongly for all of Victoria’s most vulnerable young people to receive regular therapeutic support as part of their living arrangements.

Life-changing care

Frazer was placed in foster care at 14 after a period of homelessness. “My care worker at Anglicare Victoria was April. She made the whole experience really easy,” Frazer recalls. “My foster carer was Hilary. I remember I was so thankful for a warm bed, food and the love and support of a family.”

Now in his 20s, Frazer runs his own café along with his partner and a team of eight staff. Frazer believes AV’s foster care helped him navigate challenging times and gave him the confidence to pursue his dreams.

Continuing kindness

An AV Foster Carer for over 26 years, Kim Bolton received a Premier’s Volunteer Champion Award in 2018 for her dedication to vulnerable children. While some of the children she fosters stay with her for short periods of care, others have called her place home for as long as 13 years. “Of course, it’s heartbreaking when they go,” says Kim. “But you just love them for as long as you have them.”

Victoria’s first foster care support ‘constellation’

Mockingbird Family, an evidence-informed model, has had great success internationally and was brought to Victoria by AV. It creates a ‘constellation’ of six to ten local foster carer households that work together and support one another like a traditional extended family would. Research from existing constellations has shown that this approach increases placement stability and foster carer retention.