Deciding which agency to foster with is an incredibly important decision. Fostering cannot be done alone and requires support from a small team of people to ensure the young person gets the greatest benefit they can while they are in foster care, so ensuring the right agency is helping you during your fostering journey is essential.

Thank you to Natalie and Karen for taking part in a short interview to share their experience of fostering and why they chose to foster with The Homefinding & Fostering Agency.

What is your name and how long have you fostered?

Karen: “I am Karen and I have had two foster children for 16 months”

Natalie: “I am Natalie and I’ve been fostering for six years”

Why did you choose to foster with The Homefinding & Fostering Agency?

Natalie: “Easy one. [My] husband was fostered and he was fostered by Terry. So that's why we chose this one. Obviously, it's small, independent and just more caring I think”

Karen: “And I chose this agency because Natalie's Mum is my best friend and Natalie's Mum fosters with this agency and so does Natalie and Glenn and I've heard really good things about it. I've had positive experiences with the agency and the support has been there for my husband and my lifestyle.”

For those of you who don’t know Terry is the original founder of The Homefinding & Fostering Agency and before was a foster carer himself who looked after over 60 children. At Homefinding & Fostering we have created a welcoming, supportive and close community, so whenever you heard about us from a friend or online you will always be met with friendly faces and guidance when you need it.

What three words would you use to describe fostering?

Natalie: “Rewarding, very rewarding. Satisfying.”

Karen: “And it can be challenging, but the results that you achieve and giving the children love and a home, again it's rewarding.”

Fostering requires resilience, patience and a good sense of humour to help you get through the challenging times that will come with fostering. While we wish as many people as possible would open their doors to fostering a vulnerable child or young person, fostering is not for everyone.

However, you do not need to be a saint to foster, parenting skills and training can help equip you to become a foster carer, which is one of the most rewarding and satisfying careers out there.

If you have any further questions about fostering send us a message and we will be happy to give you more information.

We are planning to run coffee morning at our agency which you can turn up to for free and have a zero-commitment chat with us and other people interested in fostering!

Hosted at 67 College Road, ME15 6SX, The dates are:
14^th March at 10:00 am to 12:00 pm

27^th April at 10:00 am to 12:00 pm