Our People
Staff Team
Fiona Endacott has a Bachelor of Social Work, a Double Advanced Diploma in Management and Human Resources, a Graduate Certificate in Business Administration and is currently completing her MBA. Her work history is also impressive - having come to CF&KC-SA after a long stint working in mental health, most recently as Manager: Operations for Skylight Mental Health.
Fiona has already made her mark on our organisation – having worked on our winning tender, achieved our quality accreditation and established and managed our very committed advocacy team. She is a mother of two and deeply committed to the wellbeing of children and Carers.
Sharee joined the CF&KC-SA team in September 2020 as Senior Advocate.
Sharee joins us with 20 years of experience within the community sector and in the final stages of completion of a Bachelor of Social Work. Sharee's extensive career started in the early childhood sector as a Team Leader, and as an educator in the education sector with Tafe SA and Gowrie SA. Sharee has worked in the Department of Child Protection, and for the past six years has been the Practice Lead at Time for Kids.
Sharee prides herself on building relationships and working in partnership with children and families towards achieving optimal outcomes.
Sharee brings a wealth of knowledge, commitment, energy and passion, in particular for children and families, and we are excited to have her join the team.
Sharee is a mother of two girls and has a love for their 3 dogs whom she also sees as her four legged children.
Tandanya joined CF&KC-SA in April 2019 as a Carer Advocate, supporting Foster & Kinship Carers within her role. Tandanya holds a Masters of Social Work and a Bachelor of Social Sciences with experience working within a Kinship Care support team and with Anangu Youth in Education. Her time working with Kinship Carers gave Tandanya a valuable insight into the experience of carers and the profound challenges that they face. As a result she has developed a strong passion to work alongside Carers to make a positive difference in their lives.
Tandanya is excited to be working in a fulfilling role with a driven and passionate team that supports and advocates for the rights of Foster and Kinship Carers.
Isabella joined CF&KC-SA as a Carer Advocate in July 2021, supporting both foster and kinship carers. Isabella has completed her Bachelor of Social Work with experience working in this space as she completed her university placements with the organisation. Her time during placements gave her experience working with foster and kinship Carers giving insight to Carer experiences and understanding the diverse challenges they can face. Isabella was offered the 6 month role of Carer Education Officer in June 2020 to develop and publish educational resources for the Carer community. Through this role Isabella developed strengths in facilitating reference groups, organising Carer information session and publishing Carer guides. Through her time with the organisation, her passion has continually grown and is excited to now be fulfilling the role as Carer Advocate.
Natalie joined CF&KC-SA in December 2016 as Administration and Events Coordinator.
Natalie is experienced working in key administrative roles in health, research and University sectors and also event management, including key organiser of the International Conference on Community Health Research in 2009. A mother of two, she is an enthusiastic and active member of school Governing Council and Parents & Friends Committee. Natalie enjoys interacting with families and the community and is excited to apply her skills and knowledge to her role with CF&KC-SA.
Emma is our Project Officer who is currently working on a project with the Commissioner for Children & Young People and is also supporting Carers with the independent Carer Inquiry
We welcome Lauren to the team, who commenced her role as Carer Council Project Lead in October 2023.
Lauren's fostering journey started when she was eighteen and her parents became foster carers. Many years later, Lauren is now a specialist foster carer herself and a carer member of CF&KC-SA.
Lauren has a Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice, a Bachelor of International Relations, a Bachelor of Letters (Spanish), and a Diploma of Community Services Work.
Prior to joining CF&KC-SA, Lauren was working as a lawyer with a social justice focus. She also has experience across the community services sector in aged care, disability and youth work. Notably, Lauren has experience as a youth worker with children in residential and emergency care and has worked at a primary school in Spain as an English language assistant.
Board
Holly Veale joined the CF&KC-SA Board in July 2022
Holly Veale is a barrister at Jeffcott Chambers in Adelaide who practices predominately in administrative, civil and commercial law.
Holly’s first exposure to the Child Protection System was via her role in the Child Protection Systems Royal Commission.
Thereafter, she appeared in the Youth Court on numerous Care and Protection Matters, predominately acting for children. In 2017, Holly acted for a foster family who managed to intervene in a Supreme Court appeal regarding a child in their care. This demonstrated to Holly the lack of voice which carers had within the system and the need for their voice to be heard. She hopes her legal and advocacy skills will assist CF&KC-SA to ensure carers rights are understood and respected.
Outside of the law, Holly is the proud mother of two young boys and, when she isn’t acting as a taxi service to her kids, enjoys cooking and a good book.
Kelly is a current Kinship carer and has been so since 2015. She has always been involved in business taking on various roles in family business since she was very young. Upon graduating from university with degrees in both Business and Marketing, she pursued a career in Valuations practicing at senior management level for a number of years. Kelly has since moved to her own business with her husband, providing services to the poultry industry with a large staff and busy lifestyle. With four children in the family, Kelly engages in a busy and fulfilling life. She joined the board of CF&KC-SA in November 2017 after being an active member throughout 2017. After seeing first hand the effects on children in out of home care, Kelly has become very passionate about promoting change in the system to enable better outcomes for all involved.
Ben Haynes joined the CF&KC-SA Board in August 2022
Ben has been a Financial Adviser since 2009. He has been running his own practice since 2017 working with clients and businesses to manage and improve their financial wellbeing. Ben has a Bachelor of Finance from Adelaide University, Graduate Diploma of Financial Planning and holds the Certified Financial Planner designation.
Ben is married with 2 biological children. Ben and his wife are also Foster Carers and have had a foster child in their care since she was the age of 3 weeks.
Tara joined the CF&KC-SA Board in October 2023.
Tara is the Kinship Assessment Practitioner at KWY Aboriginal Corporation. She loves to sit with families and hear their stories, whilst also ensuring the Aboriginal Placement Principle is upheld for children who enter the care of family through child protection orders. Working for an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation has been empowering as it has allowed Tara to champion her values, in the areas of strength-based approach and anti-oppressive practice, as well as being trauma responsive. Before KWY Tara undertook her first placement in Baptist Care Eastern Adelaide Aboriginal Specific Homelessness team and was fortunate to gain employment at the end of that placement. Her second placement was with the Wali Wiru team at Housing SA, which also provided incredible learning opportunities. Before graduating from a Master’s in social work, Tara completed an undergraduate degree in Environmental Science and worked as a swim school coordinator
Tara is mum to three wonderful babies, who came to her through kinship and foster care as well as two biological young adults Tara's husband is her biggest cheerleader and she is so grateful to be on this adventure called life with him.
Bindee joined the CF&KC-SA Board in November 2022 and brings a wealth of knowledge regarding Board governance, execution of strategic plans and navigating the child protection system.
Dr Damien Riggs joined the CF&KC-SA Board in March 2023. Damien is a professor in psychology at Flinders University, a Fellow of the Australian Psychological Society, and a psychotherapist who specialises in working with trans children. He is the author of over 200 publications on gender, family and mental health. Damien is also a foster parent to five children.
Danielle joined the CF&KC-SA Board in October 2023.
Danielle is a strategic, impact-driven communications specialist with more than two decades of experience in journalism and public relations.
During almost 10 years working in State Government, Danielle played a pivotal role in delivering communications for some of South Australia’s most significant announcements and events with a focus on areas including child protection, mental health, disability, youth justice and homelessness.
With a passion for social justice, she has headed up the media and advocacy function for a national social housing provider and, most recently, was Executive Manager, Marketing and Communications for a leading social enterprise.
Danielle has served for more than three years on the board of a local private school and volunteered for a range of committees and services.
This position is currently vacant. The recruitment process will commence shortly.
Emma joined the CF&KC-SA Board in March 2020.
Life Membership
We are proud to honour the following previous Board Members for their commitment, support and dedication to the progress of Connecting Foster & Kinship Carers SA:
- Megan Hender - Chairperson (to November 2022)
- Donna Scott - Vice Chairperson (to November 2019)
- Jo Jarvis - Chairperson (to November 2018)