The three-minute film 'Giants' is available at www.fosteringleicestershire.com and tells the story of Jack and Ellie, siblings who want to stay together when they find themselves in foster care. COUNCILS have come together to produce an emotive film to encourage more people to come forward and foster brothers and sisters. To mark Foster Care Fortnight (May 8 – 21), Leicestershire County Council has teamed up with 12 other local authorities across the East and West Midlands to launch the short film. The three-minute film ‘Giants’ is available at www.fosteringleicestershire.com and tells the story of Jack and Ellie, siblings who want to stay together when they find themselves in foster care. The county council currently has around 500 children in its care, including sibling groups, and works to keep brothers and sisters together wherever possible. Sharon Cooke, assistant director for children and family services at Leicestershire County Council, said: “This film demonstrates the real and urgent need local authorities have to recruit foster carers, including those who have the extra space to keep siblings together. “Working together has meant we have a powerful and high quality product, at a low cost, to showcase and raise awareness for the need for more local authority foster carers. “Foster Care Fortnight is all about raising awareness of how fostering can transform lives, so we hope people will take time to have a look at our film over the next two weeks and find out more about fostering with us.” Georgina Oreffo, service manager for fostering and adoption at Leicester City Council, said: “This is a great example of how local authorities across the Midlands can work together. We all share the same need to find more foster families who can change the lives of our most vulnerable children. “‘Giants’ is an extremely moving video that shows just how important it is to keep brothers and sisters together in foster care. We would urge anyone who is interested in becoming a foster carer to contact their local authority to find out more.” The theme of ‘giants’ was devised to blend the concept of people who help us in society (such as foster carers), and also to highlight the strong bond and relationships that siblings have as they look up to and care for each other, becoming each other’s ‘giant’ in life. The project was led by Coventry City Council which had won the Film Convert Corporate Film award in 2015 for Alfie’s Journey, another fostering film also made by production company Reel Twenty Five. For more information about fostering with Leicestershire County Council visit www.fosteringleicestershire.com or call 0116 305 0505. Source: http://www.loughboroughecho.net FFP Member News: TACT - Fostering means everything to me, it can be hard work but it’s so rewarding9/5/2017
I always knew I would embrace fostering disabled children because my son had been born with severe disabilities. Sadly he died when he was just six, leaving a huge gap in my life. My fostering journey started more than 25 years ago, when my first husband and I worked as child minders. We began offering respite to children with special needs and we so enjoyed having the children in our home. Despite having four children of our own, the house always seemed so empty when the children in our care returned to their families. So we started fostering. With such a large family, people could not understand how we were also able to also look after a disabled foster child. Fortunately, our social worker had four children herself and was very supportive, believing we could do it. Our first placement was an eight-year-old girl with severe learning and physical disabilities, and no speech. We were told she would not live to adulthood, so we thought long and hard before she joined our family, knowing that we would ultimately be putting our family through loss in the not so far future. She was beautiful and made people smile. When she died at the age of 24 it broke our hearts, but it helped that we have such wonderful memories of her. Our second placement was a boy aged seven with epilepsy and cerebral palsy. We had befriended his family when he was just 5 and when he went into care at the age of seven he came to live with us. Twenty years on, he still lives with us. He is happy but still needs a lot of support with his disability. Sharing a home with children with disabilities has helped our birth children to develop into adults who have a loving and accepting approach to disabled people. We are so proud that they have all gone on to become support workers helping young people with disabilities in need of support. Two of my children are our back up foster carers, so that our foster children can remain in their home whenever my husband Neville and I need a break. After my husband and I divorced I was a single carer for a few years, before getting married to Neville seven years ago. He has taken to fostering so well. We faced our biggest challenge in 2012 when I was diagnosed with cancer. I couldn’t bear the thought of the children moving out. We dealt with the questions asked by the children. I was extremely unwell and had very intensive treatment, but throughout all my bad days Neville supported me with keeping the children at home. Our TACT and local authority social workers were fantastic, trusting and supporting us to maintain stable family life during a very difficult situation. I am in remission now thank goodness. Kassie joined our family when she was eight and our house was starting to struggle for bedrooms. Attics were converted and extensions were added to accommodate our large family. We built a cabin for our birth daughter and converted our garage for our birth son to live in. Our new girl was very different to fostering boys with learning disabilities but we loved having her with us. She left at 16 to live with her boyfriend, but we remained close. Two years ago I had the pleasure of walking her down the aisle, a very proud day for me. Neville and I are Nana and Grandpa to their two boys. Next, a four-year-old boy with learning disabilities and autism joined our family. We were only meant to have him for a weekend, but when he held my hand on the way home from school my heart melted. So he stayed. He is now 19 and we are supporting him through transition to college where he will be working towards achieving independence and life skills. Another young boy with learning disabilities joined the family when he was eight and left two years ago when he was 18. He is still very much part of our family spending weekends, Christmas and holidays with us. Finally, a 15-year-old girl joined the family last year. She is very bubbly and its very refreshing to have a girl in our home again. As you can tell, fostering means everything to me. We have a large loving family and it can be hard work, but so very rewarding. We have always known a busy house full of toys, noise and love. My children call me Earth Mother. To anyone interested in offering a disabled child a place in their home I say give it a try there is no skill just caring and being there for them. Lynda TACT Foster Carer Source: https://www.tactcare.org.uk It is The Fostering Network’s Foster Care Fortnight and Lorraine Pascale – celebrity Chef, author and former foster child, is backing an appeal by fostering and adoption charity TACT (The Adolescent and Children’s Trust) for more people to consider fostering sibling groups. There is a major shortage of foster carers prepared to look after siblings. TACT is concerned that the impact of placing brothers and sisters in different foster homes can have a negative impact on children and young people when they are already suffering feelings of abandonment.
TACT Patron Lorraine Pascale said: “I had a positive experience of foster care, but I know only too well the issues faced by looked after children. Being taken into care can be a confusing and upsetting time, add being split from your brother or sister in the mix and the situation can be even more distressing.” Andy Elvin, TACT CEO said: “Sometimes brothers and sisters will be separated because it is in their best interests, but in general we know that it is important for siblings to remain together where possible, when they need a foster care placement. Children placed in foster care tell us this is what they want. Fostering sibling groups can sometimes be challenging and demanding, but it is also extremely rewarding.” TACT foster carer Rob can testify to the rewards of fostering siblings. Rob said “Bob and I love fostering. We went from zero children to three siblings, and at first it was a bit of a shock, our daily routines changed drastically. By offering them our time and attention they have really blossomed as individuals and their personalities have developed so much. The children have enriched our lives beyond recognition and we have learned so much over the past year. We would recommend fostering siblings to anybody.” If you are thinking about fostering sibling groups please be aware that it is a requirement that only same sex siblings can share bedrooms. Most people are capable of making a positive difference to a child’s life; we need carers from all cultures and religions whether married, single or living with a partner. And there is also no upper age limit to foster; some people foster well into their 70s. If you want to find out more about fostering please go to www.tactcare.org.uk or telephone 0330 123 2250 Source: https://www.tactcare.org.uk A child in foster care reflects on their experiences and gives guidance on what new foster carers should expect By a child in Foster Care Being in care for me was and still is a mix of negatives and positives thrown together. Other young people always ask what it is like, and the best way I can describe it is that for whatever reason you cannot go home and have to live with people who are essentially strangers to you. They’re usually quite disappointed to hear that it’s nothing like Tracy Beaker. I think one thing potential foster carers and foster carers should keep in mind is giving the young person space and time. You may mean well by checking on them every half an hour, but being in a new household with people they have never met before will take some time for them to get used to, and repeatedly checking on them will most likely push them away. This is something I wish some of my previous carers had kept in mind. The young person for themselves I use a wheelchair, and one of my previous carers really treated me differently because of this. I don’t think they meant any harm but I really could have done without it. I was 15 and wasn’t even allowed to go to the cornershop to get some chocolate. I mean, as if I was going to run away! Foster carers should see the young person for themselves, not their disability or health condition. Get to know them as a person and not just assume they have a low level of independence and intelligence because their legs don’t work. I mean, David Weir didn’t even have legs, and look at what he managed to do. This relates back to getting to know the young person. One of my carers really got to know me and remembered things I said. For example, I must have mentioned I get really bad dandruff, and when she went shopping later that week she picked me up some anti-dandruff shampoo. It’s the little things. Don’t leave them out I would suggest that, if you have children of your own, whatever you do don’t leave out the fostered young person. For example, if every year at Easter your children get an Easter egg, get them one too. If around Christmas all your children get advent calendars, get them one too. It’s not the egg or advent calendar they are after, it’s the fact you included them in the household unit. The last thing I would say is I have a very strong opinion about carers learning about different religions and backgrounds. As a foster carer you will be taking care of children and young people of different ethnicities, backgrounds, religions and possibly even nationalities, so I think it is essential that you have a basic knowledge, such as what halal meat is or what kosher meat is. Obviously, I’m not saying that foster carers should know everything because they will learn as they meet more young people, but they should at least have a basic knowledge and be eager to learn more. This piece is an extract from the book ‘Welcome to Fostering’, a new guide to fostering published during Foster Care Fortnight, which runs from May 8 – May 21. Source: http://www.communitycare.co.uk FFP Member News: Community Foster Care - Ben says life – and foster care - is what you make of it8/5/2017
Ben Sheridan was 13 when he was placed into care. He had been living with his nan in Cheltenham who could no longer care for him because of illness. “I was told I’d be going into care for a short period,” said Ben, now 20. “It was a bit daunting. I had no idea what it would be like. But my social worker explained it was only for 28 days to begin with, then it would all be evaluated. So I thought I might as well roll with the punches.” Punches were not what came his way. The first foster carers to welcome Ben into their home were Steve and Wendy Impey who have been carers with Community Foster Care for almost 20 years and have looked after more than 15 children. Ben’s 28-day trial period came and went. And seven years later, he is still with Mr and Mrs Impey, living independently in their annexe and making his own way in the world. “When I first arrived, Wendy was in the kitchen and Steve was at work. Their son was 22 and living in the annexe which is now my own home. There was another cared-for child on the computer in the living room. It was like walking into an everyday household. “I moved my stuff into my own room, and that was it. “For the first two weeks I spent most of my time on my games console. I didn’t know anyone in Gloucester - it was the school holidays and my school was in Cheltenham. “It was another cared-for child who dragged me out and helped me get to know people. He was 16. Now he’s 23 and like my big brother. It was through him that I made the best mates that I’ve still got today. “When my nan got ill, I realised that everything was about to change. I had to grow up a bit quicker than most to handle the process better but it was ok. It was just circumstances - and how you handle those circumstances is what makes you the person you are. “At the end of that first month, I was asked if I wanted to stay. I liked how things were going so I thought ‘why spoil a good thing?’ “My home with Steve and Wendy became a permanent placement. And from then on I had a pathway plan - there were meetings every six months with social workers and Community Foster Care to make sure everyone was happy.”
At 18, Ben had left school with six GCSEs and was no longer part of the care system. He moved into supported lodging (the annexe) and spent two years at Hartpury College studying for an outdoor adventure diploma. He now has a full-time job at McDonald’s in Eastern Avenue and is a firm fixture in the Impeys’ extended family which includes two grown-up sons, two other cared-for children, Barney the dog and Skye the budgie. Being gloomy is not part of Ben’s make-up – far from it. “Being in foster care has allowed me to grow into the person I am today. What you get out of life depends on what you put in, and I’m a firm believer that if you want something, you have to earn it,” he said. “I’ve tried to handle every situation as it comes. I’ve never felt the need to kick off. “The Impeys are brilliant people. What has always stuck with me is Steve saying that if you want something, you have to work for it. Life doesn’t land on a plate.” His advice to any child coming into care is plain: “Always have an open mind and try to be flexible. “It’s a natural reaction to think things are going to be bad. You wonder whether your carers will like you, and whether you’ll like them. But everyone I’ve met along the way has been there to support me. “I’ll stay in touch with Wendy and Steve for the rest of my life. I can never forget them. It’s a relationship for life.” Source: http://www.communityfostercare.co.uk FFP Member News: Community Foster Care - Ryan reckons he’s hit the jackpot with his foster carers8/5/2017
Ryan Aves reckons he ‘hit the jackpot’ when he walked through the door of Ana and Haydn Price. “They’re the best thing that could have happened to me,” said the 18-year-old who was placed into care at the age of 10 along with his younger brother when they both needed a foster home. The pair arrived at the Prices’ home in Hucclecote via a placement with Community Foster Care. “I’d had two foster homes in six months. Then one day my social worker picked me up from school and said I was going to a new placement. It was scary and the nerves kicked in – I was afraid of everything,” said Ryan, now 6ft 4in tall and a towering version of his 10-year-old self. “I wasn’t very well-behaved, especially in supermarkets. I had eczema. I didn’t wash. I got bullied at school. All I wanted to eat was chips and takeaways.
“I was afraid of the dark, of falling down the stairs, of falling up the stairs. I followed Haydn everywhere because I thought he might leave me. I used to wander around the house at night, just worried. “After about five weeks I began to sleep properly and woke up one morning thinking ‘I could get used to this’. “I started to try different foods and took small steps every day. It got better and better. “Now I think my life here has been absolutely fantastic – I got very lucky. “I’ve been looked after by nice carers – they are the best ever. I’m not saying that I don’t love my mum, but after eight years with Haydn and Ana, they are the best thing that happened to me.” When Ryan’s 18th birthday came along in November 2016, and after much discussion with Haydn, Ana and Community Foster Care, he opted to stay with the Prices on the Staying Put scheme which enables cared-for children to remain with their long-term carers on an independent living basis. Now he is studying for GCSEs at Gloucestershire College. He gets up at 6am each day to muck out the family horse Henry, before cycling from Hucclecote to Cheltenham and back. He has no doubt that fostering transformed his life. Not only is he settled and happy, he has a wide support network made up of Ana and Haydn’s relatives, the team at Community Foster Care, and friends made at CFC’s regular social events for foster families and children. He sits on CFC’s Student Forum which acts as a sounding board for cared-for children. “From the moment I came into care, I’ve had the best two people in the world to look after me. I’ve been able to do anything - climb trees, go cycling, running, playing golf. “I’ve had my ups and downs, but these two have turned me round and put me on the right road.” His message to other children who face the fears that entering the care system inevitably bring is simple: “Don’t be nervous. Relax. You will be loved. You will be happy.” Source: http://www.communityfostercare.co.uk Foster Care Fortnight takes place from 8 – 21 May 2017 and celebrates the amazing impact that foster carers have on young people’s lives. Tina and her husband Darrell have been fostering with St Christopher’s for four years in Peterborough. Here, Tina shares their experiences of looking after young sibling groups Why did you decide to become a foster carer?
Darrell and I had always spoken about fostering but we were just waiting for the right time. Before fostering I worked as a child-minder for nine years and we have raised our own children, so between us we had a lot of experience and wanted to use this to help children who needed homes. We waited until four of our five children were older before we started. Currently two of them still live at home, aged 13 and 26. Our children and extended family have been really supportive with it. They’ve been great with the young people we have looked after, especially the two that still live at home. What did you look for in a fostering agency? The main thing we wanted was an agency with lots of support. We saw an advert for St Christopher’s and liked that they were a charity. The Fostering Manager came to visit us and we got on fantastically – so it flowed from there! The training at St Christopher’s is really good and the staff are so easy to get along with. How did you find the application process? I thought it would be worse than it was. The staff have to ask lots of questions to make sure you are capable of being a good carer. They were really helpful and supportive throughout. Some of it makes you think about your own childhood too, so be prepared to talk about that. Is fostering different to what you expected? We hadn’t met any foster carers before so everything was a bit unknown, but we went into it very openly and chatted with carers at Skills to Foster training about their experiences. Since becoming a carer people have approached me saying they’re thinking of fostering. I always make sure they know there will be challenges, but it’s also really rewarding. What’s been your stand out moment in fostering? The last group of young people arrived with no boundaries and had very challenging behaviour. The oldest boy wasn’t in education when he first came, so we got him back into school and he had 100% attendance, which was a great achievement. We made so much progress with the youngest girl – she said “I love being here and I feel part of the family.” When young people say things like that it makes you see how much of an impact you’re having, which is really rewarding. Fostering is definitely so much more fulfilling than child-minding! Do you want to change a young person's life through fostering? Have a chat with us today on 0800 234 6282, or fill in an enquiry form to request a callback. Source: http://www.stchris.org.uk I was six when Adam was carried through our kitchen kicking and screaming and saying words I had only ever heard grownups say. This was our introduction to fostering, a child being taken from his family and asked to live with a family he had never met. Adam soon settled into our home and quickly became another brother to me (along with my own two brothers). I felt sad when he described incidents of abuse and neglect that he had endured with his own family, but I mostly remember the fun times I got to share with him, such as going on holiday together or introducing him to lots of games that he had never played. You took to fostering as though you were born to do it. Before having my brothers and me, you had agreed that, one day, you would like to foster and now you were doing it. You showed guidance, love, patience and support to Adam for the two years he was with our family, right up until the day he was adopted and left us. Ten years passed and I had just turned 18, when, out of the blue, we received a phone call from Adam – he had remembered our telephone number from a decade ago and he thanked us for showing him love and kindness all those years ago. It is the saying goodbye to the children you have lived with that is particularly challenging. We have welcomed newborn babies straight from hospital into our home, then had to say goodbye two or three years later. No amount of training can prepare you for that “loss”. You can only hope that they continue to be safe and loved and free from abuse and neglect when they move on (whether that be back to family or adoption). More than 80 children followed Adam, and the majority have kept in touch. That is something I am proud of and I know you are too. I am now a social worker and I know fostering is not easy – it is damn challenging. However, you made it look easy. You have so much love to give. People often ask how I felt about sharing my parents with other children and I reply that it never occurred to me that I was sharing them. You had so much love for me and my siblings, and the fact that you were able to extend that love to two or three foster children (at any given time) astounds me and makes me the proudest, luckiest daughter in the world. You have never heard me say these things before, but I’m writing this letter to tell you that I think you are the most incredible people I have ever met. Foster carers don’t always get the recognition they deserve for doing such a challenging “job”. (I use that word lightly because fostering is so much more than a job, it’s a constant devotion.) Foster carers welcome strangers into their home, family, life and heart, they provide them with love and stability. For that reason, I not only thank you, but every foster carer in this country for their dedication and love towards these children who have had the most difficult starts to life. I would also encourage anyone reading this who is considering becoming a foster carer to do it! It will be the most challenging but most rewarding thing you will ever do and I know my parents would share those sentiments. With love from your daughter Source: https://www.theguardian.com |
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