Demand for foster parents higher than ever across the UK

January 18, 2010 by Shawn Douglas
Filed under: News

Demand for foster parents is at a new high in the UK as social workers in the UK remove an increasing amount of children from situations of abuse and neglect.

Leading U.K. childcare charity Bernardo’s has issued a report that calls for government support in raising awareness for the need of foster homes. The report, issued today, coincides with the beginning of the charity’s Fostering and Adoption Week, meant to raise awareness of the need for foster families.

Official statistics from The Fostering Network indicate that over 10,000 foster families are needed in the U.K. today. As social workers remove more children from unstable homes in the wake of the Baby P case, the number of children without a caring home has increased significantly. June of 2009 saw a record 784 new cases, and the number of cases in July and September were up by 47 percent compared to 2008, according the Cafcass.

Bernardo’s chief executive Martin Narey said in a press release: “Persistent, chronic child neglect and maltreatment is not uncommon in the U.K. and the rise in the number of care applications since the death of baby Peter shows an encouraging change of awareness. We must continue to support social workers to intervene early when they feel a child is at risk. The increase in referrals is resulting in an urgent call on expenditure, and the government must find the funds.”

“The huge shortfall of foster carers amounts to a crisis as it is vital that stable and secure foster placements are available. The government needs to urgently invest in a hard-hitting national recruitment drive for foster carers, it is past overdue.”

A survey conducted by YouGov.com found that 80 percent of people polled have never considered foster care as an option. Additionally, 18 percent of those that have considered becoming a foster parent have never acted upon the consideration. YouGov also found that of those that have considered fostering a child, the most important considerations were having control of what sort of child they fostered and having the option to foster on a short-term basis.

Jonathan Ewen, Bernardo’s director of fostering and adoption, noted that the considerations given by those polled by YouGov are all considered by Bernardo’s. “Barnardo’s works very closely with its carers to identify the type of child best suited to them and their families, and short break carers are also in high demand. Short break care entails opening up your home for as little as a few weekends a year.”

As part of its Fostering and Adoption Week, Bernardo’s is hosting a number of events to spread awareness about foster care. More information about the events can be found here.