A safe loving home with parents and family around to care and look after us is something that we often take for granted. But for many children, a safe caring environment, somewhere they can develop and grow is something they can only dream about.
Foster Care Fortnight is an annual campaign designed at raising awareness of the huge demand for new foster carers across the country, and raising the profile of fostering. The campaign runs from May 16 – May 29th and is the UK’s largest foster caring recruitment campaign.
It’s a staggering statistic, but it’s estimated that 9070 new foster families are needed in the next 12 months alone to care for a wide range of children with varying needs and demands. Every year roughly 11% of foster carers leave the service due to retirement – so it’s vital they are replaced.
When we think of foster care we tend to think about very small children, and although there are plenty of young children who need fostering –the largest groups that need support are older children, sibling groups who don’t want to be separated from each other and disabled children too.
Cumbria County Council hopes that throughout this campaign, more people will step forward and find out if becoming a foster carer is right for them.
If fostering is something you’d like to know more about, then there are local drop in sessions that you can attend. They will provide you with plenty of information about what’s involved and are an excellent opportunity to ask questions and (hopefully) sign up.
Sessions are being held at:
Committee Room 1 – County Offices
Kendal
10am – 2pm Thursday June 2nd
The Forum on Duke Street, Barrow
10am – 2pm Saturday June 11th
For more details on fostering, please call 0303 333 1216 or visit www.cumbria.gov.uk/fostering
