Fostering and adoption have been staples of Home and Away since the show first aired in 1988.
Alan Bateman, the Head of Drama at the Seven Network at the time, came up with the idea for the show when driving through a country town in southern NSW. Stopping in an ice cream shop to escape the heat, he struck up a conversation with the locals about a new building causing controversy on the town’s main street.
Pictured: The late Alan Bateman, creator of Home and Away.
“[It will be] a place for druggies, thieves and bludgers,” was how one resident described it. Alan was stunned to learn they were talking about a foster home, but it gave him an idea for a new show.
“Then in the country town I saw it.” said Alan in a 1989 interview. “Nobody in the community wanted [the foster children] to move in and I began to wonder how streetwise city kids would adapt to the new lifestyle.
Suddenly I thought, there is my slice of life in a community. Some residents were violently opposed to what they saw as troublesome kids being dumped on their own doorstep. Others wanted to give them a go. It had all the elements of fine drama.”
Soon, the basic premise of the show had been developed – and it all surrounded Tom and Pippa Fletcher and their six foster children.
Fast forward 33 years and fostering may no longer be front and centre on Home and Away, but it has still played an important part in the show’s storylines over the years.
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<p>2012 saw the arrival of Jett James (Will McDonald), a troubled teen with a drug addict mum. After his mother’s death, Gina (Sonia Todd) and John Palmer (Shane Withington) took him under their wing and fostered him themselves.</p>
<p>They eventually offered to adopt Jett, but Gina’s sudden death put the plans on hold when John admitted he was struggling with the idea of adopting Jett alone.</p>
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Finally, at John and Marilyn’s (Emily Simmons) wedding, Jett asked the couple to adopt him, which they did shortly after. 100vw, 1200px” data-lazy-src=”https://www.backtothebay.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/mia-ari.jpg” /></p>
<p>Now, adoption is about to become centre stage once again.</p>
<p>Mia (Anna Samson) and Ari (Rob Kipa-Williams) have had nothing but bad luck when it comes to having a child of their own.</p>
<p>They suffered multiple miscarriages in their years together, before eventually having a beautiful baby boy, Kauri. Devastatingly, Kauri died just a few days after being born, leaving the pair struggling to cope.</p>
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The impact on Ari was huge, and it led him to focus on a life of crime which landed him behind bars for a decade. His years in prison separated him from Mia and her daughter Chloe (Sam Barrett), as he pushed them away rather than make them wait for his release. 100vw, 1200px” data-lazy-src=”https://www.backtothebay.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/tane-nikau-ari-parata.jpg” /><img decoding=)
After his spell in jail, he moved to Summer Bay with his sister-in-law Gemma and her son Nikau. They were eventually joined by Tane (Ethan Browne), and Gemma returned to New Zealand soon after. 100vw, 1200px” data-lazy-src=”https://www.backtothebay.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Home-and-Away-7558-Ryder-and-Chloe-discuss-getting-a-food-truck-ASAP.jpg” /></p>
<p>By coincidence, Nikau bumped into Chloe whilst backpacking in New Zealand. The two had been like siblings growing up, and Chloe accompanied the young Parata back to Summer Bay, where Mia closely followed in search of her nomad daughter.</p>
<p>She had a dramatic reunion with Ari, but the pair soon realised that their feelings for one another had never truly gone away, and it wasn’t long until they were back together and happier than ever.</p>
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<p>Of course, the most important things to Ari are Mia and Chloe, and he has no intention of abandoning them again. They’ve accepted that they aren’t going to have a child of their own, and are looking forward to whatever their future holds… together!</p>
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This week, they come up with another idea – why don’t they adopt? If they’re matched with a child young enough, they’ll still get to share the experience of raising a baby, but with none of the medical risk.
