What's the Answer? - Create

Independent living skills• There needs to be extra funding for more programs.• The basics need to start with foster carers, just like other young people learning skills at home.This would include opening a bank account, cooking, cleaning.• More mandatory training for foster carers. This training would include how to teach young peoplelife skills, and helping to change the culture of foster care from carers seeing their role as a job, tothat of a parent.• Involve volunteers/mentors/paid workers in training young people.• Have someone go to a young person’s home and do an assessment, undertake skills developmentsessions with the young person, and leave information.• Include life skills training in flexi/alternative schools.• Actively refer young people to services.• Driving lessons.Mentoring programs• More funding for mentoring programs.• Mentoring programs through CREATE.• Paid and volunteer mentors – depending on the needs of the young person.• Support for paid mentors to receive a qualification.• Flexibility within mentoring programs for young people to nominate someone to undertaketraining to become a mentor e.g. community soccer coach.• Mix of ages of mentors.• Participation of young people in interviewing for a mentor.Information about services and supports• Leaving Care Kits for all young people.• Booklet informing young people of their rights regarding transitioning to independence, given at15 years.• Contact book given to young people: nation-wide, state-wide, and locally based services andsupports.• Case workers need to be better networked to their communities.• This needs to be part of all young people’s transition plan.Connecting young people to services and supports• Physically taking young people in to services – this should be part of every young person’stransition plan. This would include doctor, dentist, mental health, Medicare, health care fund,drug and alcohol supports.• Link young people in to youth activities, and involve the carers.• More funding for programs for young people to connect with other young people in or post care.• Mentoring programs: young people need supportive adults in their life, not just peers.• Need to have two young people linked in to a young person’s life, who aren’t paid. Include intransition plan.• Interactive websites with games.• Stable placements.• More dedicated training for foster carers, all workers.44