More than 40 children in need of foster homes in Sheffield "just want to be loved and cared for"

According to the Fostering Network the number of children in care is continuing to rise each year and more than 100,000 children were in care in the UK last year.

In Sheffield there are 243 foster families with 331 beds for children in care.

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There are currently more than 40 children in need of foster placements in the city.

Catherine Crompton, fostering team manager at Sheffield City Council, said: “Across the country we have seen an increase in the number of children in foster care which has been exacerbated by covid.

“Most of the children who enter foster care do so because of abuse at home. This could be physical, sexual, emotional or neglect often contributed to by drug and alcohol abuse by adults.

“There are also parents who can’t look after themselves or their children due to mental health issues or because they are suffering from domestic abuse.”

Councillor Dawn Dale, chair of the education, children and families committee at Sheffield City Council, said: “Foster carers provide a home and a safe space for our children who have had a difficult start in life.

“If you become a foster carer, you become a surrogate parent and create a warm, safe environment for our children at some of the most difficult times in their life.”

Coun Dale added: “We always try to keep our children within their own families but this is not always possible so it is important that we have our own family of foster carers in the city.

“When we speak to our young people with care experience, they tell us they just want to be loved and cared for. It’s about someone giving up their home, space and time to create that environment for our children.

“You don’t need any qualifications to be a foster carer. The only requirements are that you must be over 21 years old, have a spare bedroom and be prepared to do our in-house training. You need to be a caring soul because you are going to be giving a lot of care to our special young people.

“We have a good training package and a good support programme. It’s really important that we offer this training to our foster carers because some of our young people who come into care will need that little bit of extra support.”

Ms Crompton, fostering team manager at Sheffield City Council, said: “We have foster carers from all different backgrounds. One of the qualities we look for is playfulness. Some of these children missed out on play experiences when they were younger and need carers who will have fun with them.

“We often look for carers with ‘parenting experience’ but this doesn’t mean they have to have kids themselves. They could have experience working in a nursery or caring for family members.

“There are lots of benefits to becoming a foster carer; foster carers are paid for their time and they are given generous allowances to look after the child. We also provide fun activities for the children and their families, allowing them to get to know other children in care.

“The biggest draw to becoming a foster carer is the satisfaction of giving a child a loving home. Many foster carers are still in touch with the children they cared for many years down the line and have them round for Christmas dinner each year.

“Many people believe they cannot have a career and be a foster carer. This is not the case and we have programmes which can fit around work. Our support carers provide one weekend per month to look after a specific child.

“Our goal is always to maintain a relationship with the birth parents where possible to enable children to maintain relationships with their birth family in their future lives. We encourage foster parents to build positive relationships with birth parents so the child knows they are loved and supported by all of their care givers.”

To increase awareness of this campaign members of the foster team were invited to Bramall Lane to watch Sheffield United’s top of the table Championship clash with Sunderland.

Foster carer of four years, Mick Lewis, said: “I wanted to help make a difference to young people going through hard times. It has been a really positive experience seeing them flourish and grow in confidence.

“I had the chance to speak in the Fan Zone at the Sheffield United match at Bramall Lane to advertise fostering. It was an amazing opportunity and I jumped at the chance.

“It was a great moment for care-experienced children to watch a big game which they may have never had the chance to do before.

“For anybody looking to start fostering I would encourage them to look into it. There is an enormous amount of support available. The fostering community is tight-knit and there are lots of support groups where people will answer any questions or concerns you may have.

“The young person we have fostered for three years said the most important thing was feeling wanted and loved. If you are able to make a young person feel like that then go for it.

“It sounds simple but if you have a spare room then you are halfway there!”

For more information on becoming a foster carer visit https://fostering.sheffield.gov.uk/welcome-sheffield-fostering-service