Parents Like Me! > Overview

… She’d have them three months, four months or six months but then they’d go back to the Department. Then she’d get them back again, then they’d take them off her, then I’d have them, then my other daughters would have them, then somebody else …. So, I knew eventually we would have to take them, but when it finally happened it happened fast …

The sequence of events that leads to grandparents assuming care of their grandchildren is nearly always painful and often highly distressing. While the exact pathway to care may vary from family to family, the reasons are often interrelated. That is, while many of the grandparents we have interviewed state that they parent their grandchildren because of child abuse, child neglect, family violence, incarceration, and/or parental death. They nearly always then go onto say that these reasons were related to mental health and/or drug and alcohol abuse issues in their adult child.

It is, therefore, not surprising that Grandcarers describe the period of time surrounding the arrival of their grandchildren as extremely challenging as they must deal with numerous emotional, medical, legal and financial issues in which they have had little previous experience. Indeed, it is not unusual for grandparents to describe this time as being saturated with problems.

Grandcarer: a grandparent who has assumed full-time parental responsibility for their grandchild(ren).

Fortunately, in very recent times, prompted by the groundbreaking research conducted by COTA National Seniors, Federal and State governments have begun to recognise that Grandfamilies are a distinct group of carers that must be included in policy and practice guidelines. But, perhaps more importantly they have also begun to realise that Grandcarers need assistance on how to access relevant services.

Grandfamily: a family whose basic structure includes a grandparent and grandchild(ren) in a parent-child dependent relationship. The family may be headed by a single grandparent or a couple. The description nearly always implies the absence of the child(ren)’s biological parent(s) from the home.

Where to start!

An excellent starting point is Grandcare, a support service for Grandparents Caring for Grandchildren. Funded by the Western Australian State Government, the Grandcare program is delivered by Wanslea Family Services Inc and can be contacted at 1800 008 323 (freecall, 10am-3pm, Mon-Fri)

We also suggest you download a copy of the locally produced resource guide, Grandfamilies: A Resource Guide for Western Australian Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. The latest edition of this publication has been revised and now includes new information on youth gambling and what to do when parents demand access or turn up to remove children from your care. It also includes chapters on legal issues, child protection and managing challenging behaviours. Feedback indicates that the guide has proved to be a very valuable resource.