Why Foster? | Fusion Fostering

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Why Foster?

Fostering is a necessity to protect vulnerable children and young people who need a home.
Our carers tell us they love to foster as they find it extremely rewarding and satisfying.
If you want to do something amazing and join the fostering community, Fusion are here to help you.

You may be wondering why fostering is so important and why there is such a pertinent need for new registered foster carers across England. According to statistics from The Fostering Network, the UK’s leading foster care charity, 65,000 children live with almost 55,000 foster families across the UK. Every year new children enter the care system who need looking after in a safe home, either on a short or long term basis. In the next twelve months, The Fostering Network predicts that a further 7,220 foster families will need to be recruited, trained and registered to cater for the demand. We believe with the current climate of the COVID-19 crisis this is likely to increase based on the overwhelming demands for placements and what current placement teams are telling us across the UK.

Children and young people need to be fostered for a variety of different reasons. No two children will have had the same experiences that led them to be fostered and so time must be taken to understand the unique needs of each child. Some children will have been taken from birth parents by law-enforcement due to significant safeguarding concerns. Reasons for this type of action can include neglect as well as abuse – physical, emotional, exploitation or sexual. Other-times children are taken into care when family members are ill or struggling to cope. During these concerning times of the COVID-19 crisis, we are experiencing children coming into care due to families struggling and lacking safe and appropriate support during the lockdown period.

Foster care gives children the chance to lead safe and more fulfilling lives when that possibility is no longer feasible for them at their birth home. Whilst some children may be able to return to their birth family after a while, for others, fostering is more of a long-term solution. For those young people, a long-term care plan will be prepared for them which may involve staying with a foster family for many years.

As more foster families take placements, we urgently need new carers to look after children and young people under our care.

So, now you know why fostering is so important, but why should you foster? Our foster parents at Fusion Fostering love being part of the team and they love their role, some of the reasons they state include:

The rewarding nature of the role.
The chance to watch a young person grow, develop and learn.
A sense of giving back to the community.
The chance to have a fulfilling family life.
Sharing their experience and knowledge with a child or young person.
Enjoying the challenges that come with being a parent.
The chance to learn new skills and be part of a tight-knit group of others carers, support workers and colleagues.
To learn and grow from what placed children bring to them as a family.

There are so many positives to being a foster parent. Mostly, our carers just love the children and young people in their care! The rewarding and satisfactory nature of the role cannot be overlooked and many would say that this is the main reason they choose to foster. Although our carers do not foster for the monetary reward, our foster parents do receive a generous allowance for their hard work. Find out more about the fostering allowance by clicking here.

If you think you have what it takes to provide a stable and happy home for a looked after child, please contact us at Fusion Fostering today. We love to speak to prospective carers. Check out the foster care requirements and give us a call to discuss options for moving forward. Ring 03301 239 355, email info@fusionfostering.com, fill out the contact form below or use the live chat tool to speak to a member of the team straight away!