Olivia is 8 years old and is a bubbly character who is always laughing and singing. Olivia’s foster carers describe her as “very bright, sweet and beautiful”. They add that Olivia has a good sense of humour and charms them with her funny little sayings. Olivia enjoys music, singing and dancing and since being in foster care is becoming much more confident in trying new things, she has developed an interest in cooking since being with her current carers and enjoys spending time in the kitchen.

Lauren from Rochdale had a successful career working in family law representing parents whose children were in care. It was because of this experience that she decided to make the change to become a full-time foster carer.

“It’s the best thing I’ve ever done,” she says. “I can truly say that fostering is my vocation in life.

“I was working at a solicitors and I would attend meetings to hear all about these plans for the children and just thought, ‘that’s what I want to do, I want to help children’.

Jackie and Bob are a married couple in their 50’s who have been together for over 30 years and have two grown up sons. They have previously run successful businesses, including a pub, restaurant and shops. They are very family-orientated, and like to be kept busy, so fostering seemed like a perfect lifestyle change when business commitments were making their work-life balance tip in the wrong direction.

It’s about rewards and goals. Make the goals a bit higher each time, and persevere. Fostering is challenging but you know what – it’s rewarding as well. Some young people come to you with nothing, they’ve never had anything. They’ve never had any routine before. To see them flourish is fantastic!

Lauren and Danny have been fostering for almost five years and are currently fostering an older child and a teenager as well as having a six month old baby of their own. Both placements they have are long term, “they’re part of our family,” and she feels their baby has helped “cement” the family and the given the boys a role as older brothers.

Like most teenage girls India spends a lot of time on social media. She’s very into make-up and spends hours watching You Tube videos and blogging about beauty tips from her often untidy bedroom. India’s foster carer says day to day life with her is like a roller coaster with the big highs and low lows of teenage life. She’s helping India pursue her ambition of being a beautician helping her focus and get the grades to get onto a college course.

It is a big responsibility accepting a mother and baby into your home but there is so much value in doing it.  You become their mentor; the person they need to be able to trust and rely on.  It can be quite scary at first, for all of us.  Inviting new people into your home, for it to also become their home, means they need to feel comfortable, relaxed, safe and secure. They need to feel free to use domestic appliances, you need to make sure you don’t feel as though you are losing control in your own home - it’s important to get the balance right.

Conor takes a lot of pride in his appearance, but he doesn’t mind getting his hands dirty when it comes to cars.  Now he’s in Year 11 he’s keen to leave school and get trained up as a mechanic. He’s struggled growing up in an environment where his sexuality wasn’t always accepted.  Coping with bullying and depression has meant he has missed quite a lot of school and is no longer in mainstream education.

“You’re probably too young to remember but it was the plight of the Vietnamese boat people that first got my husband and I interested in helping children,” says Stockport foster carer Glenys. “Because they were repatriated rather than fostered or adopted we couldn’t help them directly.

“But the idea of children that were in desperate need certainly opened our eyes the idea of fostering as a way of making a difference.”

Elle Mae was then an enormous help in preparing her foster sister for the transition to her adoptive family. She made her an audio photo album as well as a memory box full of tactile things so that the little girl could feel them and remember the special things that she loved to do.

Regular visits, being part of a team and personalised support for both Sheila and her foster son Tom* – that’s the benefits of fostering for Salford City Council. 

Sheila, who began fostering four years ago with a private agency, said the support she now receives from focus in comparison to the agency is excellent.

“My cousin fostered so it was always something I wanted to do and went to the same agency they were with,” said Sheila who lives in Manchester.

“We came to fostering after seeing and advert in our local newspaper,” says Angela a carer from Halton in Merseyside. “We did the training, got assessed and within nine months we had two boys living with us. It really was that simple.

“I’m not going to deny it wasn’t a steep learning curve,” she continues. “But the two boys are still with us now aged 17 and 19. One’s doing his A-levels and the other’s at college. They make me so proud because of what they’re achieving in their lives.”

Ginny and her husband Peter have been fostering children for the past 14 years.

Ginny grew up in a family that fostered and after meeting Peter they both decided that fostering would work well around their full time jobs.

They are currently fostering five children between the ages of 2-16 alongside a child of their own and have had a variety of foster placements over the years, including short and long term and children with special and complex needs.

Ian and Kevin applied to Leeds after attending an information evening. They had a positive home visit and undertook the fostering assessment process. Ian and Kevin were new to Leeds so the Assessing Social Worker introduced them to local carers and discussed how the council could support them. Ian and Kevin were approved at panel to care for one child of primary school age.

When Jack was six and Emily ten their mother died, their father became unable to cope and they were neglected. Jack and Emily went into foster care with a local family who already had a younger child. Their lives were turned upside down and they became shy and struggled at school. Neither of them was keen on trying anything new and they weren’t confident in their own abilities.

Hear about what it's like to foster first hand; "The amount of people who would come up to me and say 'Oh I could never do that!'

Josh is part of a special sports club and enters competitions at a regional level. He’s been in foster care since he was little. When he arrived with his current carers he didn’t speak and had some challenging behaviours. His foster carers have received training to help them create routines and boundaries that give him a sense of security.

Josh’s foster carer says; ‘What stuck most were his eyes. They appeared dull like a candle with an odd flicker. Now over the years his eyes are shining bright and have a beautiful sparkle.’

Jenny, 52, who has fostered with Warrington Borough Council for two years, said: “Before my husband and I got married, we said we wanted three children of our own and to adopt a child too. Which I know is quite unusual to have that mind-set from the outset, but I think my childhood had a big impact on that decision. Terry had a very happy childhood, but my world turned upside down at 14, when my mum passed away.

‘We had a five bedroom house so had no excuse for not having enough room!’ Anne and Peter are foster carers for a brother and sister. Anne worked with children but felt that she wanted to do more with her skills.

‘We enjoy seeing the children develop and grow and knowing that the changes we are seeing in their behaviour, their attainment at school and their personal values are largely down to us and our providing consistent care.’

This LGBT Adoption and Fostering Week Alec and Kenny tell us why they're #proudtofoster

Alec and Kenny were inspired to become foster carers through Kenny’s work with children with behavioural issues, knowing that many of the children he worked with came from difficult backgrounds and now foster Matthew, a 16 year old with severe learning disabilities.

Louise lives in Stockport, Greater Manchester. She has been a foster carer for seven years. After a career in nightclub management and time spent as a sale manager she decided that she needed to do something with her life that was more aligned with her personal values.

This led to becoming a foster carer; more specifically a foster carer for teenagers.

“I really enjoy mentoring people,” she explains. “In every job I’ve ever had. I love watching people develop. And with that in mind I thought I’d give fostering a go.”