Together we can build a future for our children through fostering
During National Care Leavers Week (28 October to 3 November), Buckinghamshire Council is highlighting the important role the foster care community plays in building a bright future for the children and young people they care for.
Together with the support of the council’s fostering team, children looked after in foster homes can grow and thrive. The experiences these children have in foster care stay with them as they journey into adulthood and leave the care system, shaping the adults they become and impacting their future lives.
The theme of National Care Leavers Week 2024 is ‘All of us, we are one’, which highlights how strong connection and community lead to successes in the fostering journey.
Buckinghamshire Council is one of over 100 councils who have taken part in producing a short film entitled ‘Everything’, which illustrates the impact fostering can have, and the difference foster carers make to the lives of the children they look after. View the film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMjM7y9aj90
In Buckinghamshire, foster carers can access a wide range of training, support and unique perks including a rebate on council tax, leisure passes and travel alongside highly competitive financial allowances.
One of the ways Buckinghamshire Council supports foster carers is through building strong links and relationships within the fostering community. The service recently launched a new, third, Mockingbird constellation in Buckinghamshire. Mockingbird is a pioneering programme delivered by The Fostering Network in partnership with 62 fostering services across the UK. The programme nurtures the relationships between children, young people and foster families, supporting them to build a resilient and caring community of six to ten satellite families called a constellation.
Relationships are central to Mockingbird. The hub home carer builds strong relationships with everyone in the constellation, empowering families to support each other and overcome problems before they escalate. Mockingbird brings together a community of up to ten foster families, like an extended family, to support children and carers.
Chrissie is one of the foster carers in the new Mockingbird constellation, she explained: "I’m Chrissie, and along with my husband and our four amazing children, we have been a short-term fostering family since 2012.
"When Mockingbird was launched in Bucks two years ago I was delighted as it is such a great way to support each other as foster carers in a community that builds on relationships and experiences. That in turn provides a strong, nurturing and stable base in caring for our children and young people living in these families.
"I feel privileged that we can be part of this great project, and I am looking forward to working alongside fostering families within the constellation and being able to help provide the support they need to continue giving the best care to our children and young people."
Anita Cranmer, Buckinghamshire Council’s Cabinet Member for Children’s Services and Education said: “Care Leavers Week is a great time to reflect on the wonderful work carried out by our foster care community in supporting children and young people in our care. We are grateful to the dedicated network of carers we already have but we still need more people to come forward to foster. It is clear what a difference you could make to the life of a young person in care.”
If you are interested in finding out more about fostering, you can:
- Book a place on one of our free regular online Fostering Information Evenings
- Sign up to our newsletter
- Call us: 01296 674 973
- Email: [email protected]