Kinship Care vs Foster Care in NSW

Kinship Care and Foster Care in NSW — What Is Actually Different

Both kinship carers and foster carers look after children who cannot live safely with their parents. Both can be authorised by DCJ. Both receive the same fortnightly care allowance rates. But the two arrangements differ in how carers are recruited, how much agency involvement continues, and what happens when the placement is no longer needed. If you are a relative who has been asked to care for a child, understanding these differences helps you know what to expect.

Who the Carer Is

The defining distinction is the relationship to the child:

• Kinship carer — a relative (grandparent, aunt, uncle, older sibling) or a person with a significant prior connection to the child (family friend, community member). The carer already has a relationship with the child before the placement.
• Foster carer — a person recruited, trained, and authorised by an accredited OOHC (out-of-home care) agency to care for children they typically have no prior relationship with.

NSW prioritises family and kin placements when they are suitable and consistent with the child's best interests. For an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child in statutory out-of-home care, section 13 of the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 sets a general placement order beginning with the child's extended family or kinship group, then the child's community, and then another Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander family living nearby, subject to practicability and the child's best interests.

The Authorisation Process

Both kinship and foster carers undergo an assessment before being authorised. But the process differs in practice:

• Foster carers complete pre-service training (such as Shared Lives or Stepping Stones) and assessment before a child is placed. The assessment includes background checks, medical clearance, home assessment, and referee interviews; timing depends on the agency and circumstances.
• Kinship carers may be assessed after the child has already been placed, particularly when the placement is urgent. DCJ conducts background checks, a home safety assessment, and interviews, but the training and support framework is less structured than for foster carers. This is a known gap: advocacy groups like GRaKCA have long argued that kinship carers need better up-front training and support.

Financial Support — Same Rates, Same Tiers

The fortnightly DCJ care allowance is identical for kinship and foster carers when both are authorised under a Children's Court order. The base rates effective 1 July 2026:

Both carer types also access establishment payments (up to $1,400), contingency funding, and respite. The allowances are non-taxable, non-means-tested, and do not reduce Centrelink payments.

The difference is that many kinship carers are informal — caring for a child through a private family arrangement without DCJ involvement. Informal kinship carers receive none of the DCJ allowances. They rely entirely on Centrelink payments (FTB, ACCS, Foster Child Health Care Card). There is no equivalent category in foster care — every foster carer goes through DCJ or an accredited agency.

Level of Agency Involvement

Foster carers are supported by an accredited OOHC agency throughout the placement. The agency coordinates with DCJ, the carer, and the child's family. Ask the agency what case management, home visits, after-hours help, training, and reviews are available for the placement. DCJ retains parental responsibility (PR to the Minister) for the child.

Kinship carers receive less ongoing support. If PR is allocated to the Minister, the kinship carer is linked to an OOHC agency and should receive similar support to a foster carer — but in practice, kinship carers report receiving less training, fewer visits, and less crisis support. If PR is allocated directly to the relative (Supported Care) or transferred via a Section 79 Guardianship Order, DCJ's active involvement typically ends once the order is finalised. The carer is on their own, managing the child's needs, Centrelink claims, and school enrolments independently.

What Happens When the Placement Ends

For foster carers, when a child returns to their parents or moves to another placement, the foster carer's involvement with that child ends. The carer may take another placement through their agency.

For kinship carers, the family relationship continues regardless of the formal placement status. Even after a child returns to their parents, the grandparent or relative remains part of the child's life. This can create complications — particularly around contact arrangements, ongoing Centrelink claims, and the emotional weight of watching a child return to a situation that may not have fully resolved.

Which One Are You?

If DCJ has asked you to care for a relative's child, you are a kinship carer. If you are raising the child through a private family arrangement with no DCJ involvement, you are an informal kinship carer. Either way, you are not a foster carer — and the support available to you reflects that distinction.

The NSW Kinship Carer Support guide is built specifically for kinship carers — covering the payments, paperwork, and support services that apply to your situation, whether your care is formal or informal.

See more New South Wales guides →