Fostering is something that has always been on our radar. It’s something we both love the idea of, and we feel that as a family we have a lot to offer children who need a bit of time, a bit of stability and care.
We actually went through the fostering application ourselves a couple of years ago. We went to a variety of meetings where we were introduced to social workers and other foster families. We learnt about exactly what it means to foster, what children need and are entitled to, and how it would be likely to impact us as a family with 2 young children. It was a huge decision, which naturally involved the whole family – not just our immediate family, but grandparents, our siblings and our circle of friends. We spent a great deal of our time researching the process and found some fantastic fostering agencies, such as Foster Plus, along the way. As one of the leading fostering agencies in the UK, they have a team of dedicated foster carers and a support network of staff and social workers to prepare families for fostering, and ensuring good, secure homes for children who need it.
All children should be entitled to a roof over their heads, food in their bellies, stability and care. It’s not really a lot to ask, and this was our motivation for wanting to foster. After several weeks of heartfelt chats, talking to others in a similar position and several nights sat up scouring the internet we decided we wanted to proceed, and a social worker came to do our home visit. This was possibly the most nerve wrackign part for me – someone looking around your home and deciding if it is fit for purpose. To say I cleaned a lot that day would be an understatement.
HOme visit ticked off, and approval under our belts, we were so proud of ourselves. Being given the chance to help even 1 child in need felt like an enormous privelige.
Our fostering plans had to be put on hold when we discovered we were expecting Max. We needed to concentrate on our newborn baby, adjust to being a family of 5 and settle into a new routine. Now Max is 1 and we feel that things are back on track again, fostering is definitely something we are considering again. We know we can do it, we know we can offer good things to a child, and even if we only provided short term foster care for one child over the course of our lifetime – well that’s something to be proud of in my eyes.
Fostering matters. It’s more than providing a house and some help with homework. It’s providing a home and a family for a young person who, for whatever reason, doesn’t have that. I know we can do that. Would you?
This post is in collaboration with Foster Plus.
It’s so great to foster, I stand by it like I stand by choosing rescue dogs.
Such a lovely thing to do for a child who really needs you. I would definitely do this once I have a stable living arrangement x
Fab post. Fostering is such an important job. It’s something I would love to do when my boys get a wee bit bigger.
Such a,perfect post. It’s something I would love to do in the future if we had a spare bedroom x
my mum and dad were foster parents for over ten years .. it was a rollercoaster but it was amazing x
what a great thing to do! Good luck to you all!
I would love to foster, its there in my long term plans. Hopefully a teenager as that is where our skills lie. I really value teens and as teachers we know how chaotic some lives are.