Spotlight on new Care Standards resources

Since the standards came into effect on July 1, we’ve created a range of new resources to help us meet our obligations. These include:

• My Voice, My Rights cards [PDF, 6 MB] to tell tamariki about what their rights are while they’re in care.
• A Tamariki All About Me Plan, which includes information about tamariki and how they’ll be supported while they’re in care. Their social worker will make sure they have a copy they can understand.
• A Welcome to our Home booklet, which caregivers create for tamariki to show them what their home is like before they move there, so they’ll know what to expect.
• A bag for tamariki to put things in when they move around.
• A life events book and kit tamariki can use to record their achievements like winning a race, relationships such as with their friends or their Nan, and important events like birthdays.
• A memory box that tamariki can use to store things they treasure and taonga so they’re kept safe and they can easily take them with you wherever they go.

Our social workers will make sure tamariki in care have access to these resources.

This month we’re featuring two of the resources: the Tamariki All About Me Plan and the Welcome to our Home booklet.

Find out more about the National Care Standards

This was created because children and young people told us they want to understand why they’re in care, and what’s going to happen next for them and their whānau.

The plan is completed by social workers in discussion with tamariki. It sets out how their needs will be met in a format they can understand – as required under the Care Standards.

We’ve designed a template that can be used to create the plan. It covers a range of important things, such as: where I come from, my whānau and important people in my life, my learning and health, the people around me who can help me, my hopes and dreams, things I am good at, food and drink I like, things I want to know about my caregivers, my routines, and visits with whānau.

Read more about the Tamariki All About Me Plan on the Practice Centre website

Under the Care Standards we’re obligated to provide information to tamariki about their new home before they move there, as changing living situations can be unsettling.

The Welcome to our Home booklet has child-friendly information about their caregiver and new care environment. Caregivers use a template (in English or te reo) to create this with support of their caregiver social worker.

Tamariki have told us they’d like to know things like:

• Are they trustworthy, kind and honest?
• Do they have enough food to feed me?
• Will I be sharing a room?
• Is there somewhere to keep my belongings?

At a minimum the booklet needs to cover safety, routines, and basic necessities like food, clothing and toiletries. The caregiver also provides information about their family, culture, language, the physical environment, pets, and things to do for fun, using a mix of text and photos.  

The child’s social worker will share the booklet with tamariki and talk them through what it means for them, and how the process works. This may include an opportunity to meet with their new caregiver before they move in.

Find out more about how the Welcome to our Home booklet is used on the Practice Centre website