It took some time to find out who the correct person was to deal with regarding the screening process. Eventually we learned that living in Salt Rock we had to be screened through the Stanger Child Welfare Department and so we set up the meeting. Armed with my list from Cristy I set about preparing a file on pretty much our whole lives. Who were are, what we do, our monthly budget, our family, our health, our home, criminal reference checks etc. It really helped to make our first meeting go smoothly and the social worker took my file and said that I would here back from her in about 2 weeks. She asked me to be patient and explained that they were short about about 6 staff members and under a lot of pressure and they are. Three weeks later I called her back and she said that she would need to direct me to another social worker to arrange a home visit. When I reached her she asked me to call her back after the weekend. When I called her back she scheduled it for 2 weeks from then. 2 weeks from then she moved it forward another few days and then eventually it was time for our home visit. She was very nice and took time to explain everything to us and promised a screening report over the next couple days - it arrived a week later. I don't highlight these delays to knock the social workers - they do the best they can given the circumstances and pressure that they face. I simply want to highlight that everything takes longer that expected and patience is something you will require on this journey!
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