This is the final week of Foster Care Fortnight, a campaign that was first established by The Fostering Network in 1997 to highlight the positive impact of foster carers on children and young people throughout the UK.
Barnet Council is supporting Foster Care Fortnight
We have over 320 children in foster care in Barnet, so it’s incredibly important we raise awareness and show our support for this essential part of our community. With only a few days left, join us in showcasing the honourable commitment of foster carers in the local area by using the hashtag #ThisIsFostering on social media.
Fostering helps to keep Barnet’s vulnerable children and young people safe. Some children need to live away from their family temporarily. Moving into foster care allows them to live locally to all that is familiar such as school and friends as they adjust to being away from their normal home. Foster carers can look after children and young people from as little as a few days to as much as several years or until the young one(s) in their care can safely return to their own families, move onto a permanent family, or live independently.
Felicia, 16, and her younger sister, Maya, came into care 5 years ago and have been living with their foster carers, Theresa and Jenny, ever since. Felicia shares how being in foster care has helped changed her life for the better:
“I have been living with Theresa and Jenny now for five years. I consider them family. They have done everything to make me feel at home. I like the feeling of knowing I’m safe and having people around I can talk to who will listen, and the routine of meals, bedtime, school… has become something I enjoy. My foster carers are great – the way they care for us and they are always there for us, helping us with problems and I feel part of their family now too.”
Martine and her partner, Sonia, have been fostering for nearly nine years. Martine describes what it’s like to foster in Barnet in the video below.
If you’re interested in fostering, please call 0208 359 6274 or visit our Fostering page.
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