International Women’s Day & Local Foster Carers
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ast year 75% of newly registered foster carers in Southwark identified as women. The continued dedication and commitment of local foster carers enables us to provide loving stable homes for young people in the communities they were raised. One local foster carer, Francine Borg, has agreed to share her experiences of fostering for Southwark Council. Francine was inspired to become a foster carer by her own mother who was a foster carer. After having her own children Francine decided that she was ready to start her journey and has been fostering for nearly 27 years.
Do you remember the first child you looked after? Yes, he was a new-born baby straight from the hospital; he only stayed with me for a few weeks before he went to live with a maternal auntie. I was so excited discussions had been occurring for a while so I knew what was in the pipeline. I knew from the outset that it wasn’t going to be a long placement and actually that was quite nice. Over the years you learn that the longer children are with you the harder the goodbye is.
Can you explain why despite the above you provide long-term fostering placements? The longer a placement lasts the more secure the young person feels, they are able to develop a deeper bond and they trust you to help them. Apart from developing a strong bond I also get to see the children grow and witness their successes. Some long term placements continue to visit as adults, it’s a life time relationship; you eventually get to see them start their family and you meet their partners and their children. I recently cared for a child pre-adoption and receiving updates from her parents and seeing her settled in a happy forever family is worth the hard goodbye. When things are tough you find a way through by talking and seeking support, especially from the supervising social workers. I’ve had some great supervising workers, so thanks Southwark for that. 38 | SE22 - March 2020
Can you tell us about providing care for siblings? I like to take on sibling groups because these children have shared experiences and are usually a comfort to each other; at first they will often find talking to each other easier than talking to me. These children have lived together from birth and have shared experiences, so I think it’s important to keep siblings together whenever possible. In my experience children settled better in sibling groups as they are a comfort to each other.
Is there anything you would like to add that I haven’t asked? If you are thinking about fostering just ring up and enquire! You have nothing to lose by finding out more and a whole lot to gain. We would like to take the time to celebrate and thank all of our Foster Carers and encourage anyone who wants to know more to contact Southwark Council Fostering Recruitment Team: 0800 952 0707 / fostering@southwark.gov.uk
