Peter wants all potential new foster carers to know there can still be plenty of time for hobbies, sports and date nights outside a caring role.

He and his wife Debra often meet others who tell them they’ve considered caring but are yet to explore the idea.

“It’s not all peaches and cream, but I’d say the overwhelming part is positive,” he says, adding that children in out-of-home care have suffered traumatic experiences that can present challenges.

The couple offer respite, short-term and emergency placements through ac.care, finding this fits in well with their busy lifestyle.

The Department for Child Protection is sharing carers' stories in the lead up to Foster and Kinship Carer Week (13-19 September), which recognises the vital role family-based carers play in children’s lives.

Peter, the chair of the state's Carer Council, stresses carers aren’t expected to agree every time their agency calls to gauge their availability for a placement, and that any help they can offer makes a difference.

“We still go on holidays and go to Crows games and we go out dancing,” he says.

“You might do something once a year and there’s others that might do something 30 times a year and they’re both fine, and everything in between.”

The Department for Child Protection aims to safely reunify children with their birth families wherever possible. Foster carers play a vital role in caring for children while services work with families to address safety concerns, or to find extended family members who can safely care for the children.

Among special moments in Peter and Debra’s journey was a time when two young girls disappeared to their bedrooms, then proudly returned with handmade ‘thank you’ cards.

“Stuff like that makes your heart melt,” Peter says.

For more information about foster care, visit fostercare.sa.gov.au or call 1300 2 FOSTER (1300 2 367 837).