Gloucestershire teenager wins prestigious fostering award
Rebecca won the ‘Outstanding Contribution by Sons and Daughters Award’ at The Fostering Network’s annual awards ceremony on Thursday 10 November. The award celebrates those who have gone the extra mile to support their parents or the young people in foster care with their family.
Rebecca is a perfect example demonstrating how much the birth children of foster carers contribute to fostering. She approaches fostering with a can-do attitude and a positive spirit and does everything she can to help each child who comes to live with her.
Rebecca was nominated by her mother Jacqueline, who has been fostering with Gloucestershire County Council for the last six years. She said “‘Rebecca has been my absolute rock, helping me to care for and support over twenty children. She is such a wonderful asset to our fostering family.”
Rebecca took on her role in the fostering household with huge enthusiasm, meeting each child’s individual needs in a friendly, welcoming, and optimistic manner. She has incredible empathy and goes out of her way to develop a deep understanding of the journey that each child has been on.
As well as supporting her mother and her foster siblings, Rebecca has been studying for her A-Levels and recently started a degree in medicine.
Rebecca said, “I am proud to receive this award. There are lots of birth children in fostering families who do a wonderful job and winning this award shows what a difference we can make.
“Being part of a fostering family has helped me to fully appreciate the pressures on young people now and consequently develop my empathy skills.
“Positive Mental health is so important and plays a vital role in increasing self-confidence, this in turn can lead to a young person acquiring their own aspirations in life. Communicating in an honest, understanding, and supportive manner and being a good listener has allowed me to make excellent long-lasting friendships with lots of amazing young people, and it has been an absolute privilege to have grown up as part of the fostering community.”
Cllr Stephen Davies, cabinet member for children’s safeguarding and early years at Gloucestershire County Council, said: “What a fantastic achievement. I am really pleased to see Rebecca receive this much deserved award.
“Birth children are instrumental in helping to create a happy, safe home for the children and young people their families care for. We also know that they too find it extremely rewarding. If you are thinking of fostering, please get in touch, we would love to share how you can become part of our fostering family.”
Whether you are employed or not, you live alone or as part of a family, if you are interested in fostering, we would love to hear from you. Contact us now for a no obligation conversation to find out more about how we can support you to become a foster carer for Gloucestershire County Council.
Please visit www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/fostering or call 01242 532654.