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Create memories – campaign launched soon for Lancashire’s children waiting for foster places

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Could you help a young person achieve their dreams? New foster carers are needed to provide positive role models and help young people in care reach their true potential.

Lancashire County Council is always encouraging people to consider being a foster carer, but next month there’s an added focus on finding people to support older children and teenagers while they are unable to live with their families and to help them flourish in a loving environment.

The campaign will run from Monday 10 September until Sunday 23 September. It will highlight the incredible impact a foster carer can make on a young person at a time when it is really needed, whilst also enriching their own lives.

County Councillor Susie Charles, Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Schools, said: “We need foster carers to be good role models for young people, supporting them to achieve their dreams and aspirations, providing boundaries, and helping them to feel good about themselves again.

“Being an older child, and especially a teenager, can be hard at the best of times, and being a teenager in care can be even harder. Having a stable, happy, loving home where you can feel safe and be yourself and know that you are genuinely cared for is so important. Every young person deserves this opportunity.

“This is a time in a young person’s life when they really need someone to be there for them, especially if they have been let down in the past. Teenagers need time, patience, and encouragement to help them to gain confidence.

“It really is the simple things in life that can help them to feel safe, loved, and cared for. Listening, spending quality time, and giving praise when they have done something well, will do so much to set them up for their future lives.

“Being a teenager can be tough but having the support of a good person or family can transform their lives. They are in the situation they are in through no fault of their own and are just as in need of a family as anyone. We’re urging people to think if they can help a young person to experience the many milestones that teenagers first experience.”

No formal experience or qualifications are needed to be a foster carer, all you need is a spare room available and a desire to make a difference to a local child’s life.

A package of support is available 24/7 to help foster carers in their role, including local support groups, their own social worker, a dedicated helpline, and flexible training. Training is available during school hours, evenings and weekends, and online, and can be tailored to the needs of any child.

New foster carers can expect to receive between £244 and £306 per week for each child they care for.

People who have considered fostering before but weren’t sure they could afford it are advised to find out if it could now be a viable option.

Recruitment priorities for Lancashire include finding places for:

– Brothers and sisters – including sibling groups of 3 or more children/young people.
– Older children/young people – over half of all looked after children are 10 or older.
– Children from ethnic minority backgrounds, in particular black or Asian children, and increasingly those from new migrant communities
– Long term – where children and young people are not able to live with their own families for a number of years, if at all. Children and young people stay in a family where they feel secure, while maintaining contact with their birth family.
– Children with complex/additional needs including behaviour that challenges.
– Parents and children together – this involves having a child or children with one or more of the parents in your home and supporting them to care for their children. This type of fostering is challenging but rewarding and the enhanced allowances offered to foster carers reflect this.

Councillor Charles added: “Some people may be apprehensive about the challenges of fostering older children and teenagers but we have an excellent package of support to help foster carers in their role.

“We really will support you all the way. Our social workers and matching team work hard to identify areas like shared interests, pets and hobbies that will help build a bond and rapport between your family and the young person. We also recognise and take account of your skills and experiences to find the best possible match for both you and the child.

“All children in our care are different and so we need a broad range of foster carers to meet their needs. We will consider foster carers regardless of age, marital status, gender, sexuality, disability, employment status, faith or no faith at all.

“People have a lot of preconceived ideas about why they might be ruled out as foster carers but the only thing that matters is the support you can offer the child. Whether you are older, single or never had children, you can foster.

“This isn’t a one-way street either. We know that fostering doesn’t just improve the lives of the children and young people who are fostered, it also has the power to enrich the lives of foster carers, their families and all those who are involved in fostering.

“We’ll be promoting this campaign in many ways over the next few weeks including on social media channels, on buses and on billboards. Hopefully our messages will act as an incentive for people to come forward.

“If you are interested in fostering then your local authority is the best place to find out more. More people turn to their local authorities than any other fostering provider. Foster carers across the North West are benefiting from the local support and training we provide.”

To find out more about being a foster carer, or to find out more about the campaign, please call the fostering recruitment team on 0300 123 6723.

Alternatively, visit www.lancashire.gov.uk/fostering.

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