October is ‘Children of Foster Carers Month’ – Could your family foster?

Did you know even if you already have your own children, you can also become a Foster Carer? Or that both the children who are fostered and the children in the families who foster them can both benefit from fostering?

Torbay Council  are supporting ‘Children of Foster Carers Month’, an annual awareness month in October led by national charity The Fostering Network, shining a spotlight on the vital contribution the children of Foster Carers make to children and young people in care, and how vital they can be to successful fostering. The month was previously referred to as Sons and Daughters Month.

The Fostering Network is also encouraging people to download a certificate and a thank you letter from their website to send to children of Foster Carers you know to show how much you appreciate them. These can be downloaded from The Fostering Network website. 

Councillor Nick Bye, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, said: “Children of Foster Carers Month is a great opportunity for us to highlight the fact that not only do our Foster Carers themselves do an essential job in taking care of Torbay’s children and young people in care, but also in many cases the children of families who foster also play a very important role in fostering.

“So if you know a child who fosters why not take the time to thank them, and if you already have a family and are thinking about becoming a Foster Carer why not get in touch with our Fostering team?”

Support for Foster Carers and their families in Torbay includes extensive support and training, a dedicated social worker, access to support networks including the local Foster Carers Forum, and events for you and your family throughout the year, ranging from a summer barbecue to Christmas party and Train of Lights.

Quotes from children in fostering families include:

• “I like having another brother to play with, especially when my other brothers annoy me.” ER, aged 10.
• “Fostering hasn’t affected me negatively in anyway, its just another person in a big family” - HR, aged 13.

• “It’s nice to meet up with some of our fostering siblings now they’re with their forever families and see how happy they are and how they’ve changed and grown” - TR, aged 19
• “Fostering is just having another sibling to love for a while until they find their forever home. They are part of our family always, even after they have moved on from us. You can never stop loving your sibling even if you don’t see them anymore. That's what makes it so special.” - PR, 15

If you are interested in becoming a Foster Carer or just want to find out more about Fostering in Torbay why not pop in and speak to our team at one of our upcoming events (visit our Events webpage), or if you can't make it you can also call 01803 207845, email fostering@torbay.gov.uk , or visit our Fostering webpages.