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Fostering is…Everything
Published
Gloucestershire County Council has joined fostering services across the country to produce ‘Everything’, a short film raising awareness of the urgent need for local foster carers.
Fostering can mean everything to those involved. That is the message of a powerful new fostering film produced in partnership by Gloucestershire County Council and over 100 other councils.
‘Everything’, launched on 17 October, is the seventh film produced to promote local authority fostering. It follows foster carer Mike and his family on a journey through time with two of the children they have looked after, who are now adults. A surprise 60th birthday party for Mike gives Will and Zara a chance to reflect on how being fostered made a difference to their lives, thanking him for everything. Click the below image to watch the film:
The concluding message of the film is that what you do with your life could forever change someone else’s – encouraging people to foster to make that change.
Cllr Paul McClain, Lead Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, welcomes the video and the message it conveys.
Fostering is a wonderful way to change children and young people’s lives for the better. It gives them the opportunity to thrive and reach their potential. We are proud to support the work of the ‘Everything’ project. This incredible film truly reflects the long-term impact that fostering can have, building relationships between carers and children which can last for life.
So many families and individuals in Gloucestershire open their home and their heart to children and young people who need our care, but there are many more children in our county who are looking for a loving foster family. We hope this video will inspire more people to find out more about this really rewarding role in our community.
In Gloucestershire, there are nearly eight hundred children and young people in care, and there is an urgent need for more people to foster for the county council. Foster carers are needed across the county, and particularly in Cheltenham, Stroud and Tewkesbury.
Approximately four hundred households are approved to provide foster care with the council, and those households look after just under seventy per cent of children and young people in foster care.
Thirty per cent live with agency foster carers, in residential homes and supported lodgings, and may live miles away from their family and friends in Gloucestershire, which is why the need for more people to provide local foster care for local children is so urgent.
Gloucestershire County Council’s fostering programme provides a strong support network. Anyone who fosters for the council will receive training and a dedicated allocated social worker will provide monthly visits. Competitive payments and allowances are offered to recognise the cost, time and skills needed to care for a child or young person.
The council also offers monthly support groups, wraparound support groups and activity groups. To find out more, call 01242 532654, text FOSTER to 60060 or visit www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/fostering.