Become a guardian

What are guardianship orders?

Guardianship orders aim to provide greater stability for children and young people when the Children’s Court makes a decision they cannot live with their parents.

Guardianship orders are a way of helping ensure a child or young person has a more stable, nurturing and safe home until they are at least 18 years of age, without cutting legal ties to their family.

Under a guardianship order, a child or young person is not in foster care or out-of-home care but in the independent care of their guardian.

Guardianship orders can only be made on a final and long-term basis, that is until the child or young person reaches 18 years of age. The only other orders that can be made in conjunction with a guardianship order are an order for contact, and an order prohibiting action. However, a contact order cannot be made if DCJ or an agency is required to coordinate or provide supervision of contact with birth parents or other relatives. An example of a prohibition order would be an order prohibiting a parent from going to a child’s school.

What does a guardianship order mean for a child or young person?

If a guardianship order is made, the child or young person will be cared for by their guardian until they turn at least 18 years of age, or the Children’s Court changes the order.

The child or young person will still have contact with their parents, family and important people in their life, as outlined in their care or case plan or court orders. It is important that every child and young person has opportunities to learn about their family heritage, even if they do not have contact with their family. This enables them to have a strong and healthy sense of self and identity.

If the child or young person is Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, or from a different cultural background to their guardian, they have the right to maintain connections with their culture and community and have a cultural support plan in place. The guardian must ensure the child or young person’s cultural needs are met and encourage and facilitate their participation in cultural activities and events.

This will depend on whether the applicant has been previously assessed as an authorised carer, the type of assessment and when the assessment was completed.

The caseworker will talk with the prospective guardian about the assessment process before the assessment begins.

What are the criteria for becoming a guardian for a child or young person?

The applicant’s suitability for becoming a guardian will be assessed on the following criteria:

• Successful outcomes from completed suitability checks for applicants and household members
• Medical evidence confirms they have the physical and mental health to care for the child young person until that are at least 18 years of age.
• Personal references from two people who can comment on the suitability of the prospective applicant to care for a child or young person

The applicant/s will also need to demonstrate they have:

• the ability to independently meet the long term needs of the child or young person without the case management and supervision from FACS or an out of home care agency. (This includes demonstrating they have a network of family and friends who can provide support and the capacity to meet the needs of the child or young person with limited financial support).
• an established and positive relationship with the child or young person and an understanding that the needs of the child or young person will change over time
• an understanding of the child or young person’s trauma experience, and how they will manage its potential impact  on the child’s longer term development
• the capacity to understand the child or young person’s identity and their role in  supporting  the child or young person through life story work
• the capacity to meet the child or young person’s ongoing cultural needs
• the capacity to establish and maintain a safe and respectful approach with the child or young person’s parents, siblings and significant others
• the capacity and willingness to arrange, coordinate and, where required, supervise safe contact with the child or young person’s family and ability to negotiate through difficulties that may emerge
• they have adequate and safe accommodation for a child.