Skip to main content

Week in the life of a foster carer 25


Hello!

 For those of you unfamiliar, I offer shared foster care and cover emergencies.

Shared care is where you give either another foster carer or a child's family a break by having their child for usually 1-7 nights, quite often just one or two nights.

 Emergency care are where Social Services phone you and ask you to take a child that night for at least one night. I've done this over a dozen times and least notice I've had is 15mins and most 7hrs. Some of these kids have stayed just one night; longest was 21 nights.

I've looked after 25 kids to date.

Monday -kids!

I still have Kenneth with me but only for one more complete day as tomorrow he is going to a different carer for Christmas as I'm away. His social worker emails me first thing in the morning asking if she can visit as she wants to check in on him. It's totally fine so I say yes.

In the meantime we have a few things to do. When his social worker pops by he's not phased and chats to her for a bit. I chat to her on my own afterwards. She leaves him a booklet to help understand what is going on with his situation.

Rest of the day is all good.

Tuesday - kids!

Kenneth is going to another carer in the afternoon but two things. He's very excited and can't read the time, so even though I've said he's not being collected until 2pm, at 9am he is fully packed and waiting by the door.  I do double check what he's packed to ensure he has what he needs for his mini trip to another carer.

We play games until two but he's quite impatient to leave. When he does I have a couple of hours to work before I leave myself to get a train to my family home for Christmas.

In the evening I get a text to let me know that Kenneth is doing well.



All the best, BF

 NB Bristol Fostering is a personal blog and not affiliated with any fostering agency. The author just happens to be a foster carer in Bristol, UK

 We do recommend Bristol Council though as they're fab. Bristol Council fostering inquiry form

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The value of possessions

What if your only possession was a teddy, a book or a photo? How would you feel if you had to leave the only home you've ever known with a stranger, and then be taken to another stranger's home, to live with a group of people who are all brand new and perhaps scary to you. Not all, but a good proportion of kids enter care with just a small amount of belongings. This could be because they've entered care as an emergency and there wasn't the opportunity to grab much, or it could simply be because the child didn't have many clothes or toys in the first place, so even though their placement is planned, they have limited possessions to call their own. Imagine how you would feel if you were 10 years old, brought to a stranger's home where you could be living for just a day to up to many years. You're not sure what is happening to you, it's all new, but what you do know is that despite the negative situation you were in, you still love mummy and daddy and y
Post a Comment
Read more

Missing your foster child

You know they've gone for a good reason. You know that they'll be happy in their new home. But when they leave, you mourn. Sounds over dramatic but you really do. You may have looked after them for years and watched them grow and develop, but you may have had them just a few weeks, and yet cared about them so much, and formed such an attachment that when they leave you really do miss them. We had that recently when we took in a teenage boy, brand new into care. We were supposed to have him a week or so but then it became apparent he wasn't going home and needed to stay in care. However we don't tend to do long term care, and so the boy would have to move on. But to where and to whom? The council did not know and there was a chance he'd go to a carer for a week, then another for a few days, and another and yet another, until the council found a carer who had the time, room and heart to take on a teenage boy long term. So ok, we thought. We'll keep t
Post a Comment
Read more

Week in the life of a respite foster carer 18

Hello! For those of you unfamiliar, I offer respite foster care and cover emergencies. Respite is where you give either another foster carer or a child's family a break by having their child for usually 1-7 nights, quite often just one or two nights. Emergency placements are where Social Services phone you and ask you to take a child that night for at least one night. I've done this a few times and least notice I've had is 15mins and most 7hrs. Some of these kids have stayed just one night; longest was 21 nights. I've looked after 19 kids to date. Monday - no kids (but nearly kids) I am marked as available to take up to two kids today as my rooms are currently free. Early in the day I get phoned about two kids. Not related; completely seperate. A teen girl and an asylum seeking child. I ask for the referrals and these are duly sent. I have a good read, then read them again. The girl troubles me. There are quite a lot of difficult behaviours, but t
Post a Comment
Read more