iPeople

Foster Carers

My husband and I have been fostering now for around 3 years, we have our son who is now 13. We originally fostered through an Agency where we received slightly more money but spent long periods of time without placements. In our experience we found the Agency charged the Local Authority in excess of £1000 a week to place a child with their Foster Carers to which the Foster Carer only received a small proportion of the fee. We now work for Blackburn with Darwen Social Services.

During our time fostering we have fostered over 16 children from twins at 3 months old to children age 16 years and all from different types of backgrounds and cultures.

Fostering is far from a 9-5 office job, each day is different and with it brings new challenges. As a foster carer you will be assigned your own Supervising Social Worker who you can contact for help and support. In addition there is a 24/7 support service where a duty Social Worker will be on hand to offer assistance should you require it. Foster Carer support networks are also in operation and a knew “Buddy” system has just been implemented where you can attend meetings with other Carer’s to discuss issues you may be experiencing and draw on their knowledge and experience.

As a Foster Carer for Blackburn with Darwen you will receive initial training before approval, with ongoing training to gain more insight to help you fulfil your career as a Foster Carer.

There are hundreds of Children looking for a real chance in life, just wanting to be cared for and loved, in particularly children of high school age who want that feeling of belonging. To have a family where they can put some roots down, grow in confidence and make a real contribution at their own pace! As a Foster Carer you can see a child grow each day and flourish and be satisfied it’s down to the work you have done. I can honestly say it’s one of the most rewarding career’s - and you get paid to do it.

Rachel Atkinson

Call 01254 271767 or email fostering@ipeopleservices.com