Tracey and John have been fostering for South Gloucestershire Council for the past four years, we spoke to them about their role as foster carers and asked them to share with us their experience of caring for their first foster child. Our very first child joined us as an emergency placement, he is now 12 […]
At South Gloucestershire Council like any parent, we want the best for the children and young people who we act as corporate guardian for. We want to work alongside young people with first-hand experience of being in care. Join our team of Young Ambassadors to help deliver positive change. We asked EPIC (Experienced Panel In […]
Kinship care or Connected Care is when a child lives full-time or most of the time with a relative or friend who isn’t their parent, usually because their parents aren’t able to care for them. That relative or friend is called a ‘kinship carer’, and it’s estimated that around half of kinship carers are grandparents, […]
South Gloucestershire Council is launching a new campaign to attract more potential foster carers to come forward throughout the area. Aimee Williams, a Consultant Social Worker with the Council, has written a poem ‘I LAC Nothing’, which is inspired by children in care and care leavers that she has worked with. Aimee’s poem has been […]
We’ll make sure you receive lots of support and on-going training to provide the best possible care. As the Training Officer for the Fostering Team, I endeavour to put together, a broad and varied training programme available to all of our foster carers. These can be in the form of face to face training sessions, […]
We are encouraging people to step forward into a rewarding and fulfilling role as a foster carer this Foster Care Fortnight (11 – 24 May) Every 20 minutes another child comes into care needing a foster family in the UK. In South Gloucestershire alone there are over 220 children and young people in care at […]
A Mother’s Day letter to a foster carer This Mother’s Day we celebrate everything our foster carers do for children and young people in care across South Gloucestershire. The words in this letter are real. The young person who wrote the original letter to their foster carer gave us permission to share it anonymously – […]
Sometimes, children are unable to return to live with their family and will either be placed with adopters or looked after by foster carers until they reach adulthood. Providing stability, care and support throughout childhood is one of the most rewarding aspects of long term foster care, helping vulnerable children grow into happy and secure […]
Charlotte explains the difference that her Foster Carers made… I had moved a few times before properly settling into a stable placement, which was at Alison’s home with her and her family. At first, I was nervous because I hated moving around and having to try and get used to my new home and the […]
There is no ‘typical’ or ‘standard’ foster carer – each fostering household is unique and valuable. Just as there is diversity in our children in care, our foster carers need to come from a variety of backgrounds and have different life experiences, skills and qualities to help meet the needs of our children and young […]