FOSTER carers are urgently needed in Warwickshire.
A series of community events will take place across the county to mark Foster Care Fortnight, running from May 11 to 24, under the banner ‘This is Fostering’.
Currently, around 800 children are in care across Warwickshire, but due to a shortage of local foster carers, nearly 250 of the children are placed more than 20 miles away from their schools, friends, and support networks. Warwickshire Fostering is on a mission to bring these children back to their communities.
Foster Care Fortnight aims to inspire new foster carers locally, by highlighting the positive impact that strong, supportive foster carers have on children and young people in care.
The campaign also aims to break down myths about fostering and spotlight the expert support and local training that makes Warwickshire Fostering stand out.
Rebecca Clifford, recruitment manager at Warwickshire Fostering, said: “Fostering is about so much more than providing a spare room – it’s about providing the stability a child needs to thrive.
“This Foster Care Fortnight, we want to show our communities that ‘this is fostering’ it’s life-changing, it’s rewarding, and it’s desperately needed. We have 250 children living away from their communities simply because we don’t have enough local carers.
“We are asking anyone who has ever considered fostering to come and have a chat with us at our events this month. You could be the reason a child gets to stay in their communities, near their families, friends and schools.”
The team will be at Stratford Pursuits Festival this weekend (May 9 and 10) and at Southam Fun Day (May 25).
There will also be a special book signing at Warwick Books on May 23, from 10am to 1pm, where the fostering team will join local author Fran Hill, whose novels, Cuckoo in the Nest and Home Bird are inspired by her own experience of being fostered in Warwickshire.
And there will also be an opportunity to chat to the team at Leamington Library on May 16 from 11.30am to 1.30pm.
Visit fostering.warwickshire.gov.uk for further information.
