UCDD Offering Support And Housing Assistance For Relative Caregivers

Upper Cumberland Development District continuing to offer support and housing assistance to relative caregivers.

Program Director Vickie Durham said a relative caregiver is any family member entrusted with the care of children to keep them out of the system.

“What we hear from them is that without that relative caregiver they would’ve had to send the child back to state custody,” Durham said. “I do the quarterly reports that allow me to see the reason the child is placed with a relative, and it is drug addiction.”

Durham said in Putnam County alone there are more than 3,000 individuals who are considered relative caregivers. She said in addition to offering monthly support group meetings, the Development District works to help caregivers with housing assistance as well.

Durham said a majority of relative caregivers come from the older population and are retired with fixed incomes. She said when the relatives suddenly have a higher cost of living, they need more aid to take care of themselves and their children.

“There’s extra rent, food, clothes for the children, and it’s something all 14 counties have a difficulty with,” Durham said. “And the main agency that can help us to figure this out is our educators. They might see grandma or grandpa dropping off the child at school and they know that child is being raised. So through the school system, we get a lot of referrals as well.”