What foster carers have to say

We asked our foster carers why they love fostering and how they solve its challenges. Here's what they said.

"I love to be a foster carer so any challenge I face, I find a way to solve it."

"My eldest, she had a few problems when she came to live with us and we faced them together and I think I showed to her that she can trust us. We love her no matter what and we will work things out together and I can say that after 16 months here with us we had a huge turn around. They all had a fresh start at school. They all changed schools – we changed their schools. So she got a clean start with us. It made a big different - huge, huge. I’m very, very proud of her. And she’s a lovely girl – she deserves the best."

"I think the thing is not knowing. You're at home, you get a phone call, you get a referral, you don’t know who's coming. You don't know what their diets are. You just don't know. So the challenge really is preparing for the unknown. And when you get there, if you think about it, it's the new relationship you are starting with somebody and you've got to build on that relationship and it will take time. They have to trust you and you have to trust them. So I think that’s the biggest challenge really – the not knowing, the unknown."

"Go for it. That is what I would say to them. Go for it. Everything in life you have positives, you have negatives. So it's how you tell with the negatives that is the most important thing. For me, I would always tell them you always have support around. So you are not on your own. Go for it. That would be my advice."