Finding Your Village: Building a Support Network as a Foster Carer

Fostering is an incredibly rewarding career, and like any career, it can also come with its challenges. That’s why it’s so important for foster carers to have a robust support network that they can turn to. In today’s blog we’re providing tips on finding your village and building a support network as a foster carer.

It Takes a Village

Though our concept of a village might have changed over time, the old proverb that ‘It takes a village to raise a child’ remains just as true today as it ever was, and it’s especially relevant to fostering families.

Fostering is a unique set of circumstances in which to be caring for and raising a child. Not only are you looking after children who aren’t biologically related to you, but alongside parenting, you’re also a paid professional, working in collaboration with a full team of professionals around the child, including social workers, teachers, healthcare professionals, therapy workers, and others.

Additionally, many children coming into care will have experienced difficulties in their young lives, such as abuse or neglect, and all foster children experience disruption.

This extra level of responsibility to our most vulnerable children makes it especially important that foster carers have a solid support network they can call on.

The Right Kind of Support

Foster carers need all kinds of support around them, from informal types of support that you might find from a phone call or a coffee with a friend or relative, to peer support at groups and fostering events, to the more formal support you’ll receive through supervision with your social worker.

It’s vital to have a good mix of different types of support available to you, so that you know who you can turn to.

How to Build Your Village as a Foster Carer

So where can you go for support, and how do you begin building your village as a foster carer? Here are some practical tips on finding a fostering community.

Fostering Events

A good place to start is to attend events and days out that are organised by your independent fostering agency or local authority. Here, you’ll meet and get to know other foster carers and make those all-important connections in the fostering community.

Training & Development Opportunities

By speaking to other prospective carers at your initial ‘Skills to Foster’ training, you can begin building your support network right from the get-go.

After approval, you’ll also be offered further training and development opportunities, and the chance to take part in skills workshops and take courses that are relevant to your interests and your specific area of fostering. These can be another great way to meet fellow foster carers and expand your support network.

Peer Support Groups

Peer support groups are the backbone of fostering support for many carers. These are usually carer-led and held regularly so that carers can build connections and get advice and support from people who understand.

Parenting Groups

While fostering can bring unique challenges, sometimes all you need is to chat to another parent. Don’t exclude yourself from mainstream parenting groups, such as playgroups, toddler rhyme time, or PTA coffee mornings, which can be a great way to get to know other parents in your community.

Online

In our increasingly digital world, it’s no surprise that as a foster carer, you can also find support online.

Expert advice and guidance is available via organisations such as FosterTalk, Fosterline, and The Fostering Network.

Find Your Village at Olive Branch

If you’ve been wondering how to go about finding your village, we hope this blog about building a support network as a foster carer has helped.

At Olive Branch Fostering, we know how important it is for our foster carers to have a village around them.

That’s why we offer our fostering families:

• A close-knit community where everyone feels welcome from day one.

• Carer-led initiatives with regular support groups and activities for all carers.

• Family outings, fun days, and social events to build connections.

• Awards ceremonies to celebrate the dedication and achievements of our carers, families and children and young people.

• Free membership to FosterTalk.

We pride ourselves on providing a full circle of care that includes listening, support and nurturing - because every child deserves stability and love, and every carer deserves the support to give them it.

Contact us today to find out more about fostering with Olive Branch, or book a call back for a time that suits you. We’d love to hear from you.