Why foster?
Lucy Stevens - 6th September 2018
“Why am I doing this?” is a question all foster carers will ask themselves at some point and it’s an important question to ask yourself as it enables you to keep your motivations central to your fostering experience. So why do people foster? Most people who foster feel passionately about the wellbeing of children. They want to give opportunities to children who may not have had the best start in life; they want to share something of themselves, if you like. For many, this is not centred around sharing material wealth, this is about loving, nurturing and caring for a child and for others there is a sense that “I have so much and want to share it.” Most foster
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Your fostering questions answered – personal checks and references
Lucy Stevens - 26th July 2018
What personal checks and references are needed for my assessment to become a foster carer? And why? Eastern Fostering Services wants to recruit foster carers who can meet the individual needs of children and young people and provide them with a safe and nurturing environment in which to grow. When they apply, all prospective foster carers undergo a fostering assessment which takes on average 4-6 months. The assessment includes: An initial home visit A medical report – carried out by the GP and paid for by EFS At least 3 personal references Identity checks including an enhanced DBS Previous partner references Health and Safety assessments 6-10 home visits and interviews including some with birth children and other household members A
Tags: #ProudToFoster, #ProudToSupportFostering, applying to be a foster carer, becoming a foster carer, Cambridgeshire, Eastern Fostering Services, Essex, Fostering Cambridgeshire, fostering Essex, fostering Suffolk, Suffolk, The Fostering Network
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Do I get paid to be a foster carer?
Lucy Stevens - 17th July 2018
When it comes to fostering, money is an emotive and often controversial topic of conversation. Nonetheless, in the interest of answering the questions we get about finances, it is a topic we’d like to address. We’d like to start out by making it clear that good foster carers are always motivated by a deep desire to make a positive difference in the lives of children. The best foster carers seek to nurture, love and advocate for the children in their care. In our experience, very few carers are ever motivated by financial gain and it is very important to us that they are not. However, one cannot escape the fact that it costs money to raise a child and it
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Showing Affection
Lucy Stevens - 4th July 2018
“I was told you can’t cuddle a child or sit on their bed to read a story!” This is a comment we get all the time and in the majority of cases, it couldn’t be further from the truth. In the fostering household, we want to replicate all the positives of growing up in a nurturing family. We want children to feel listened to, cherished, nurtured and advocated for. In lots of families, this sense of security and being valued comes from physical affection too, something that many of us take for granted. One of the differences between fostering and parenting is that as a foster carer, you have to be a lot more intentional around things like physical affection.
Tags: applying to be a foster carer, becoming a foster carer, Cambridgeshire, Eastern Fostering Services, fostering, Fostering Cambridgeshire, fostering Essex, fostering service, fostering Suffolk, how to foster, Suffolk, The Fostering Network
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We’re here to answer your fostering questions
Lucy Stevens - 18th June 2018
As we speak to people across Essex, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire about the shortage in foster carers, we are always struck by the fact that the same questions get asked and that many similar misconceptions are held. In a series of videos we’d like to answer the questions we hear most frequently. But of course we’ll also answer any other questions you’d like us to. Please feel free to message us or comment with your questions or tell us what’s stopping you from taking that step towards fostering. If you’d prefer to ask your questions in person, you can come to one of our events or drop in to our offices. For all dates and details please visit our Facebook events
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Foster Care Fortnight is here
Lucy Stevens - 14th May 2018
What is Foster Care Fortnight? Foster Care Fortnight starts today. Foster Care Fortnight is a national campaign run every year by the Fostering Network. It aims to increase awareness around fostering and promote its benefits in order to recruit more foster carers. This year the campaign slogan is #ProudToFoster and focuses on how varied a group foster carers are and so showing that people from any walk of life can foster. They have even produced a short film featuring one of our carers. Here at Eastern Fostering Services, we have asked our carers to produce their own short film and a blog. You can see these on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/EasternFosteringServices To celebrate Foster Care Fortnight we will be
Tags: #FCF18, #ProudToFoster, #ProudToSupportFostering, applying to be a foster carer, becoming a foster carer, Eastern Fostering Services, Essex, Fostering Cambridgeshire, fostering Essex, fostering Suffolk, Suffolk, The Fostering Network
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