Blogs

Rosemary Mazzone is a recently retired foster carer from Ramsey on the Isle of Man who was awarded the British Empire Medal last year for services to youth and the community and gained the accolade of the Pride in Mann Community Champion award in 2015.

Here Rosemary tells us about her dedication to her community, the children she looked after and her advice for prospective foster carers.

By DavidEggboro on February 16th, 2017
The day, when it arrives is cold and wet, unremarkable in many ways for January. But this day is remarkable because it’s the day that’s been looming over us for six months. It’s the day of our foster son’s substantive interview at the Home Office.
By Lucy Stevens on February 3rd, 2017

Our friends at Dreams, Britain's leading bed experts, have a regular blog about sleep called Sleep Matters Club. It's full of handy tips and advice on how to get a better night's sleep - something that many foster carers long for and which many fostered children would benefit from.

The information below is taken from a Sleep Matters Club blog and looks at how much sleep children ideally need according to psychiatrist, physician, and brain expert Dr. Daniel Amen, author of Time for Bed Sleepyhead.

Dreams have also offered us some single bed mattress protectors which are available, for free, to foster carers on a first come, first served basis. See the end of the blog for more information.

By Daniel.Sinclairtfn on January 17th, 2017

I am Yacouba Traore. I am from the Ivory Coast and I have lived in the UK for about six years. I arrived alone in England as a 16-year-old asylum seeker following the murder of my parents who were political activists in my country. I was alone, unable to communicate in English, nowhere to live, no money, no job, no friends, and no family. I was isolated and frightened. My life could not have been more different to the one I had left behind.

By DavidEggboro on January 10th, 2017
When our child first arrived six months ago he could not speak a word of English. He was completely silent and understood very little of what we tried to communicate. He wore a permanent look of mistrust and uncertainty which made his features brittle and often impenetrable.
By Lucy Stevens on January 6th, 2017
Happy New Year. Over the festive period a friend of mine with a small child commented on how confusing the law is in relation to car seats and belts for children. Foster carers have regular reminders on what the laws states so I thought it might be useful to pass on the main points.
By Cathy Glass on January 5th, 2017
As the campaigns manager at The Fostering Network, I am increasingly being asked where The Fostering Network stands on the idea of foster carers being employed, with full workers’ rights, by a fostering service. This is a complex question with a complex answer, some of which I thought I’d set out in this blog:
By Policy and Campaigns tFN on December 14th, 2016
Welcome to the November campaigns blog. This has been a really busy month for the campaigns team!
By Policy and Campaigns tFN on November 30th, 2016

This blog, by Megan Jarvie, head of policy and public affairs at the Family and Childcare Trust, coincides with the launch of their report Starting Out Right: Early Education and Looked After Children. You can read our response to the report here.

By Daniel.Sinclairtfn on November 30th, 2016

In this blog, Debbie Douglas, an experienced foster carer (and star of The Only Way Is Essex), shares ten thoughts on how she has 'survived' being a foster carer.

We'd love to hear your thoughts too. Email your list to media@fostering.net

By Daniel.Sinclairtfn on November 21st, 2016