Eight out of ten people in Wales have never considered fostering according to a poll by children’s charity Barnardo’s.
With a Welsh shortage of 750 foster carers and applications for children to be taken into care on the rise since the death of baby Peter, the UK’s largest children’s charity is calling on more people in Wales to become foster carers.
Speaking on the first day of Barnardo’s Fostering and Adoption Week 2010 (18 – 24 January), Yvonne Rodgers, Director of Barnardo’s Cymru said:
“The huge shortfall of foster carers amounts to a crisis as it is vital that stable and secure foster placements are available.”
“Barnardo’s works very closely with its carers to identify the type of child best suited to them and their families and short break carers are also in high demand. Short break care entails opening up your home for as little as a few weekends a year.
“Yes fostering can be challenging, the same as any job, but the rewards are immeasurable – you are helping to turn children’s lives around. I want to urge people to contact Barnardo’s and find out more about fostering.”
The YouGov poll also highlighted that the 20% of people polled in Wales who had considered fostering, had not taken any further steps towards becoming a foster carer. Respondents cited the two options below as those that would most encourage them to foster:
- Control over what type of children would be matched with them
- The option to offer short spells of foster care
Barnardo’s foster carer Sue Hayne said:
“When my own children were grown up I missed them, I saw a Barnardo’s advert and thought, ‘I can do this’. Foster care is a very positive experience, yes they have got their genes from other parents, but you have all the fun of parenting and seeing those kids grow up and it’s you who is helping to mould and shape them.”
Lauren, Sue Hayne’s foster daughter:
“We just clicked instantly. I’ve got the family I’ve always wanted. It’s definitely the best thing that could have happened. I’m at college and I am training to be a social worker. Once I have my own career and my own children I will go into fostering myself. I want to make somebody feel how she has made me feel these last seven years.”
To find out more about adoption and fostering in Wales , visit www.barnardos.org.uk/fosteringandadoption or call 029 2057 1960 (South Wales) or 01286 675847 (North Wales)
Barnardo’s Cymru will officially launch its new base for adoption and fostering in North Wales on Friday January 22 at its Amser Ni office in Caernarfon with an event attended by Hywel Williams, MP.
