Upholding Cultural Connection for Children in Out-of-Home Care

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A positive sense of cultural identity is critical to wellbeing, yet children in out-of-home care often lose their cultural identities and connections. There is little evidence to guide out-of-home care agencies to support a culturally meaningful foster care placement for non-Indigenous culturally and linguistically diverse children. This project tests promising practices identified by the partner organisations and research literature to produce an exemplary model of cultural care, with input from children, carers and birth families.

Trial implementation in partner organisations will inform guidelines and recommendations so that the model can inform policy and practice in out of-home care across Australia.

Purpose:

The project was designed to respond to the glaring absence of research and to be foundational in designing a model on, which later effectiveness trials could be built on, that better inform practices in the provision of culturally appropriate statutory out-of-home care for CALD children. The study focused on investigating practice and bringing together research evidence, practice wisdom and the experiences of children, birth parents, carers and practitioners to build an exemplary model of cultural care and service provision so that children supported through the out-of-home care sector are provided the best opportunity possible to thrive.

Methodology:

The project employed a mixed methods approach over four phases, guided by the following critical aims:

  1. To conduct foundational research to understand National and State policy settings, practice landscapes, and the barriers and enablers shaping cultural care.
  2. To hear directly from children, young people, birth parents, foster carers and practitioners about current practices and opportunities to strengthen cultural connections.
  3. Based on our research findings and in consultation with key stakeholders, to design an exemplary model of cultural care for children in out-of-home care
  4. To share the proposed exemplary care model and explore its implementation acceptability, feasibility, and impact.

Phase 1

examined and gathered insights from key policy, cultural and sector stakeholders across Australia's states and territories

Phase 2

explored the lived experiences and perspectives of children and young people, carers, birth parents and practitioners

Phase 3

synthesised the practice evidence to develop the model and accompanying guide and considered implementation pathways to support practice change.

Publications:

  1. Wright, A. C., Grace, R., Karatasas, K., Ezekwem-Obi, A., Waniganayake, M., Hadley, F., ... & Tokunaga, S. (2024). Innovative cultural care for culturally and linguistically diverse children in out-of-home care. Australian Social Work, 77(4), 583-589. DOI: 10.1080/0312407X.2024.2379972
  2. Grace, R., Mitchell, M., Wright, A. C., Karatasas, K., Hadley, F., Ravulo, J., ... & Waniganayake, M. (2025). The right to cultural connection for children in out‐of‐home care: Does Australian policy and practice adequately support cultural identity for culturally and linguistically diverse children?. Australian Journal of Social Issues, 60(3), 912-921. DOI: 10.1002/ajs4.70008
  3. Ezekwem-Obi, A., Blythe, S., & Grace, R. (2025). “Your culture is in you”: Cultural identity and connection for children from culturally diverse backgrounds in care: A scoping review of child perspectives. Child Protection and Practice, 5, 100134. DOI: 10.1016/j.chipro.2025.100134
  4. Grace, R., Karatasas, K., Ezekwem-Obi, A., Blythe, S., Conley Wright, A., Ravulo, J., & Hadley, F. (2026). Supporting the cultural connections of children from culturally diverse backgrounds in out-of-home care: perspectives from Australian foster and kinship carers. Journal of Ethnic & Cultural Diversity in Social Work, 1-16. DOI: 10.1080/15313204.2025.2611167
  5. Ezekwem-Obi, A., Grace, R., Blythe, S., & Edenborough, M. (2026). Supporting Cultural Identity and Connection for Children from Culturally Diverse Backgrounds in Care: A Multi-Case Study of Stakeholder Perspectives. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 1-20. DOI: 10.1007/s10560-026-01129-y