IT TAKES A VILLAGE: MOCKINGBIRD LAUNCHED IN GLOUCESTERSHIRE

Gloucestershire County Council fostering service recently launched its first ‘Mockingbird Constellation’. Mockingbird is an award-winning programme, led by The Fostering Network, based on the concept of extended family. At the centre of each constellation, there is a ‘Hub Home’, with paid, experienced foster carers who support between 6 – 10 ‘satellite families’. The model nurtures the relationships between children, young people and foster families through peer support, socials, sleepovers, and support groups.

There are currently almost four and a half thousand people in the country who directly benefit from being in one of 134 constellations, including over 2,200 children and young people. It is estimated that between 2018 and 2022, the model avoided £4.3m in costs due to increased carer retention, avoiding 382 placement breakdowns and preventing seven entries into residential care.

We held our Corporate Launch at the University of Gloucestershire and were delighted to welcome people from across the county to hear about the positive impact the constellation is having following the operational launch in September. Guests were welcomed by Tammy Wheatley, Head of Service for Permanence. They then heard from Lisa Long (Service Manager), and Charlotte Alford (Mockingbird Lead), about how Mockingbird was funded and established in Gloucestershire, and then from Sam and Mark Buckland (Hub Home Carers), about the bonds already formed within the constellation. We are grateful to Ann James (Director of Children’s Services) for wrapping up the launch with her commentary and insight, and to Cllr Rebekah Hoyland for attending and helping to raise awareness of this project within her constituency.

The aim is to launch two further constellations in 2024, and to continue expanding the model to cover the whole of Gloucestershire. If you would like to know more, please contact Mockingbird Lead, Charlotte Alford at charlotte.alford@gloucestershire.gov.uk