Warwickshire News Mine

The county council service will be on hand with some informal advice for would be carers on Saturday 5 June from 12pm-4pm at the annual Atherstone Fun Day and Carnival in Market Square.

The event takes place shortly after the national recruitment campaign Foster Care Fortnight from (17 to 30 May) comes to a close. The campaign put the spotlight on the different types of foster care for those people interested in offering support to vulnerable children and young people.

Depending on the needs of children, foster care placements can range from just one weekend a month to others that last for many years.  As a result, the fostering team believes that there are many people across Warwickshire who have the potential to perform this worthwhile and vital role.

Kelly Furness from Warwickshire’s Fostering Service said: “Fostering is a valuable and rewarding career for carers and their families.

“Carers can be single or couples; with or without children, retired, unemployed or working, so we can find the best match. To become a carer what matters most is time, space, commitment, patience, a caring nature and skills to work with children and their families.

“My colleagues and I are looking forward to meeting people at this event to tell them more about how they can get involved. We are particularly interested in meeting potential carers who can offer long term care or provide homes to teenagers.”

Full training and support is given to carers, who are matched to one of the six different schemes, depending on what suits them best. Carers are paid an allowance that reflects the real cost of looking after a child.

If you are interested but cannot attend event please contact the team on 0800 4081556 or visit http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/fostering.

For more information about Foster Care Fortnight and the Fostering Network please visit http://www.fostering.net.

Link to WCC