CAFE CONNECT
Join our meet-up in spring to learn more about fostering; as a young person, foster carer and social worker all share their own stories about foster care.
Opens in new window JOIN HERE!
#CoffeeToFoster
Coffee To Foster is a response to the urgent need for more foster carers in the UK.
We aim to raise awareness by:
C.A.F.E.
☕ Connect
Connect with others in your community to raise awareness about the urgent need for foster carers.
☕ Advocate
Advocate for children in care by sharing the stories that inspire change and action.
☕ Foster
Foster understanding and empathy by learning more about the impact of fostering on young lives.
☕ Engage
Engage with local events, workshops, and information sessions to get involved in the fostering movement.
Advocate: Advocate for children in care by sharing the stories that inspire change and action.
A child comes into the care system roughly every 15 minutes. Going into care is the final option for a child when their home environment is too unsafe to live in.
In 2024, there were 107,000 children in care.
Fewer and fewer people are coming forward as foster carers, perhaps because people are less likely to have a spare room, perhaps because as a society, we are less community focused. Foster carers that came forward a couple of generations ago are now retiring.
There are simply not enough foster carers to provide well matched homes for the most vulnerable young people across the UK.
Since 2011 the number of children in residential care has doubled.
Growing up without a supportive family home environment statistically severly reduces young peoples prospects for stability and opportunity in their adult life.
In short, now more than ever it is extremely urgent for more foster carers to come forward.
We need more people to understand what is involved in fostering, and to share the information.
MYTHS
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You are not too old to foster.
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You are not too young to foster [if you're over 21!].
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All sexualities, gender identities and races are welcomed equally.
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If you have a ‘chequered past’ that you have overcome, it doesn’t mean you can’t foster.
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If you are single you can still foster.
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If you haven't had children, you can still foster.
Foster: Foster understanding and empathy by learning more about the impact of fostering on young lives.
Blue Sky Fostering is an Ofsted Outstanding independent fostering agency, that works alongside the local council and on behalf of the foster carers we represent. Our mission is to help make children’s lives better, by helping to find and support them with a stable and nurturing environment.
We:
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Spend time carefully matching children and foster carers so that they are suited to one another.
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Ensure that our foster carers have a high level of professional training so they feel equipped to look after the children in their care.
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Support our foster carers and young people through varied events and with different support networks and teams, so they never feel alone.
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Advocate for our foster families within the wider system, working to bring about positive change for children and families within the fostering system.
There are many independent fostering agencies, as well as local council fostering services, and each will differ in its criteria and working practice. We encourage potential foster carers to research into the services around them – always try to speak to foster carers that are already with the agency if you can!
DIVERSITY
There isn’t just one type of fostering – there are many, which you can look at here.
Every child is different, and every foster carer is different. We encourage diversity. Foster carers are ordinary people doing extraordinary things.
You need to be open-minded, willing to learn and ready to engage in the fostering process...
Engage: Engage with local events, workshops, and information sessions to get involved in the fostering movement.
Come to a Fostering Coffee Morning [You can have tea too!] to learn more about fostering.
Our next #Coffeetofoster event is held in a central Brighton coffee shop in May. We hold online and actual events throughout the year. Join our monthly newsletter where we give details of any events alongside a monthly fostering story.
