Reflecting on everything we got up to this Foster Care Fortnight 2021.
It was our first year being involved in the campaign. It was amazing to join up with the rest of the fostering community to raise awareness of the life changing role of fostering.
As Hartlepool’s first independent, fostering agency it was important that we join in this years fostering campaign and share #WhyWeCare to both our local community and also nationally.
Our agency is only 8 months old and what a long way we have come! Taking these last 2 weeks to reflect on why we set up the agency, the values of our staff as well as thanking our wonderful foster parent team was just what was needed after these last few months.
Our Vision, Mission & Purpose
Sometimes the everyday work can stop us all from seeing the big picture. It was important this week we remembered why we started this agency and our aims for our foster parents and the children they support.
Our vision is to change futures for children through aspirational and well support care. We will support children and young people to build and sustain healthy relationships that will :
- support them to achieve the best outcomes possible
- lead them on to having effective strategies that will support their full and future potential
Changing Futures Fostering believes Children & Young People who are fostered thrive when they get care that:
- builds and supports their welfare and provide outcomes for
- Is strength led and recognises the impact of adverse experiences and how they can be
- Is embedded in therapeutic re-parenting that meets their individual needs
The Foster Walk
It was fantastic to see so many of our team taking part in this years Foster Walk. After months of launching an ethical fostering agency predominantly online, to get together as a team and look at how far we’ve come was lovely. To enjoy the seaside views was an added bonus!
We asked our team why they care,
“I care because all children deserve to feel understood, and to have safe and happy lives that continue into adulthood”, Martin- Director”
Too many children are seen as “hard to place” because there aren’t enough well supported foster parents who can help them recover from really traumatic stuff – we set CFF up to help these and other children thrive in loving, boundaried foster homes “, Graham, Director.
Raising awareness of the need for foster parents in Teesside was an important feature of this fortnight. We were really lucky to have been supported by our local media who featured our campaign activities! You can hear one of our foster parents talking to the BBC Radio Tees team about her experience of fostering with us here. You’ll hear us featured around the 2hour 20 mins mark!
The highlight of our whole week was spending time catching up with our foster parents about their experiences of fostering so far. We spoke to Clare, who with her partner was our FIRST approved foster parent. We absolutely love having them as part of our team.
“I’d read a lot about various foster agencies online for a few years as a bit of fact finding until I was ready to put in an enquiry. I’d read about therapeutic parenting techniques that struggling foster parents were using and Changing Futures Fostering was actually promoting this as part of their ethos. From enquiring my questions were more than answered. The training was excellent for helping us as a family understand our own dynamics and learn approaches to supporting a child with emotional needs in a therapeutic way. The support I’ve received is above and beyond excellent. I can call anyone for advice 24/7. I can only recommend you ask the questions to suit your family and be ready to change you as well as a child’s life for the better.”