For some people, fostering is something they’ve wanted to do for a long time. For others, it may be a recent consideration. Whatever stage you’re at, you need to consider is it the right time to foster?
if not now, when?
It’s worth remembering that often there may not be a ‘perfect’ time, but if you have space in your home and heart, and you’re dedicated to helping create better futures for local children – you could foster.
We encourage carers from all walks of life – no matter your age, sexuality, relationship status, if you’re single or married, house renting or owning. It’s your life experience and ability to care that we look for.
We’re dedicated to working with families across Wales to get them to a place where they’re confident in their ability to foster, and we offer excellent and thorough training and support.
How do you know when it’s the right time to foster?
We asked some of our foster carers to share what compelled them to start fostering.
For Rachel, realising that her previous job wasn’t allowing her to spend time with her family, she took a change in career to foster. She says:
“My previous job didn’t accommodate my family dynamic at all. Fostering allows me to be with my family whilst providing extra love, care and support for additional children who need it.” – Rachel
Michelle has worked closely with children for a long time as a family link carer [a service for children with additional needs and their parents, that links them with other families/individuals to give them a short break on a regular basis]. It helped her to realise everything she could offer local children herself as a foster carer. Michelle shared:
“I kind of fell into it as we did family link before. I think some people are afraid it may not work out for them, but there is the option to foster short-term and give ‘respite’ to other carers if unsure about long-term fostering.
My happy ending is that once they are here, you learn so much about yourself as a person and find this inner love that you never knew existed. We will continue to give support for years to come.” – Michelle
Starting to foster is often about finding a new purpose, and the right time
For Allison and her husband, they knew they wanted to foster for many years but needed to wait until it was the right time for their family. They knew that once their own children moved out, they would have more to give. They wanted to be proactive in avoiding ‘empty nest syndrome’ however things panned out a little differently than they thought:
“It was something that my husband and I always wanted to do. We purposefully moved to a larger house to be able to go for it when our own children showed no rush to move out… they even lived at home through university!!
Over the last ten years of fostering, our own two children have moved on to make their own homes and families. Fostering definitely made our home a happy place during what would have been empty nest syndrome for me.” – Allison
“I waited until all my children were at an age of understanding, as I knew without their support and blessing, I couldn’t proceed. When I enquired, they were all in their teenage years aged 13, 15 & 19, and our journey started!” – Karen
Sometimes it’s a change in life circumstances that allow people to fulfil their passion to foster, much like Martine:
“I had wanted to years before, but my ex-husband did not want to. When our divorce was finalised I applied to be a foster carer.” – Martine
if not you, then who?
Lynnett told us:
“My husband and I wanted to foster for many years after our children left home, but ‘life’ got in the way. Following my husband’s death, I decided that if I didn’t do it then, it would be too late, and I would always regret not doing it.
I applied and I feel I do it for both of us. I really love it.” – Lynnett
It may be that you already have a connection with fostering/adoption/children’s services. You’ve seen first-hand how being a loving foster carer can hugely improve the lives of children, and feel you have the right experience to offer this yourself, like Diane and partner:
“We adopted our daughter at 9 months old. We looked into fostering when she was 3 and starting school because we had a lovely relationship with her previous foster carer who cared for her before she was adopted by us.
We decided we wanted to be a foster family and give babies the opportunity of a great start in life like our daughter had.
15 years later, 15 babies, and still enjoying it!” – Diane
is now the right time for you to foster?
As you can see, fostering isn’t a ‘one size fits all’. There are many different circumstances that prompt people to start their fostering journey, and perhaps life is too short to be waiting around for the ‘perfect’ moment anyway (we’re not even sure if that exists). What matters most is that you have space, you can provide care, and you’re open to starting the conversation.
want to hear more from our foster carers?
Watch our videos and listen to real foster wales carers talking about what it is like to foster children with the local authority https://youtu.be/6Eni6269F3A
So, no matter what your circumstances are, you could take that step into fostering like all our wonderful foster carers have done. It’s clear that everyone sharing their journey feels like fostering has enhanced their lives and continues to reward them in ways unlike anything else.
If you’d like to know a bit more, or would like to have a chat about your circumstances, please get in touch here.
If you reside outside of RCT and would like to find out more about fostering in your local area, visit www.fosterwales.gov.wales and select your local authority fostering team.
