Christmas is that time of the year when everyone wants to be with their family. Unfortunately, some boys and girls living in our community are not so lucky. They are in the age group from the ages 12-18 and have ended up in residential housing because adoption and foster family care did not work out for them. Most of these youngsters have had a very troubled childhood and that is why they have found themselves with no loving family to take care of them. That really hurts especially at Christmas when people are coming together and sharing gifts to show they care.

Help us to make Christmas special again for these children.

We buy present for kids under the protection of The Department of Child Safety, Youth and Women and every year we receive lists of the children who are class as ‘Resi’ kids (Residential Care in the community). It is so sad they are not with some kind of family at this special time of year.

 'The reason why these kids cannot be with a foster family are varied, but simply put; foster carers struggle with challenging teenage behaviours and usually won’t accept kids over 12 years of age. Some kids have multiple disabilities combined with trauma, high risk activities, drugs, crime and disengagement from school. Foster carers cannot manage all this, especially if they have their own family or are not skilled enough.
The young people are housed in homes that are run by not for profit agencies that use paid staff to care for the teenagers. The houses are sometimes owned by these agencies but also rented from private owners. The kids are still classified as being in foster care but just not in a family. These ‘Resi’ kids are looked after by paid youth workers to play the role of foster carer. 

To help make a difference, simply click “Donate” in the menu or scroll to the bottom of the page to donate to Christmas Presents for Kids in Care.