“Our Foster Carer Julie is an exemplary foster carer.
She has 5 children placed with her, of varying ages and needs; two of which have learning needs and disabilities. E is her most recent placement, though it seemed it wasn’t going to happen at all.
E was adamant that she wasn’t leaving her current foster placement, even though she was told that she could no longer remain there. Even on the day she was due to leave, she was saying that she wasn’t going anywhere.
Julie decided that she would just go visit her and see how she could help. Julie said that E was quite resistant on first meeting her, so she just spoke a bit about herself and her fostering. She the mentioned that the foster family had already planned a holiday and that E was welcome to go with them if she had her passport.
E was still adamant that she wasn’t going, but did not object to talking with Julie and E gradually began to soften. Julie phoned me later that evening and said that E was with her and they were out walking the dog.
Through her efforts, and thanks to her wealth of experience, she was able to show empathy with E’s feelings and gave her reassurance that they would just take it a step at a time and didn’t have to go on holiday if she didn’t want to; they would work something out.
I could hear the smile in Julie’s voice and E’s laughter in the background whilst playing around with the dog. It was a good feeling to know that we have carers who can reach out to children when they feel unsure and uncertain about their future and build relationships of trust.
E continues to be happy and settled in placement. She’s also looking forward to her holiday with her new foster family.”
If you think you could offer a local child a stable environment, call our team on on 0800 389 0143.