WA Budget 2024: $46.3m investment in Home Stretch program helping foster kids transition to adulthood

Home Stretch – a “flagship program” that supports foster kids during the transition to adulthood – will receive a $46.3 million funding injection as part of the Cook Government’s Budget in May. The money more than doubles the $37.2 million that was poured into rolling Home Stretch out across the entire State, fulfilling a Labor promise ahead of the 2021 election. Home Stretch participants – young people in foster care approaching the age of 18 – are assigned a “transition coach” to help set them up for independent living. They then work with the coach to build their self-reliance, find employment and develop the financial means to move out of care by the time they turn 21. The number of young adults enrolled in the program – many of whom are Aboriginal – is now approaching 300. Child Protection Minister Sabine Winton said Home Stretch was making an “important difference” to the lives of West Australians who had often experienced significant disadvantage in their youth. “Supporting young people who have been in out of home care as they transition into independence will set them up for a positive future,” Ms Winton said. “I have had the pleasure of meeting with several young people who have been supported by the Home Stretch WA program and are making meaningful contributions to their community. “The Cook Government is proud to invest in this flagship program that ensures these young people are provided with the financial and other assistance they need during this crucial phase of their lives.” A dozen community service organisations – nine of them Aboriginal-controlled – have been commissioned to hire the coaches and deliver the Home Stretch program across WA. They include the Goldfields Indigenous Housing Organisation, which is supporting 20 young people in the Goldfields-Esperance region, and Yorganop Association Incorporated, which has 28 clients on its books in the Wheatbelt. The new funding will mean every young person in out of home care will have the option of joining Home Stretch. In addition to one-on-one coaching and access to a network of support circles, the program provides a range of financial supports. They include a housing allowance and a $2500-per-annum “Invest in Me Fund” which is only accessible with the permission of a young person’s coach and can be put towards education, aspirations or crisis relief.