Foster Care Fortnight: 14-27 May 2012
Foster Care Fortnight is the annual campaign to raise the profile of fostering and to recruit more foster carers.
Essex County Council is pleased to have support for Foster Care Fortnight from some high profile celebrities including Fatima Whitbread and Colchester United Football team.
“I am proud to support this year’s Foster Care Fortnight. As someone who had a difficult childhood, I really understand how a loving home can make a positive difference to a child’s life. Foster Care Fortnight is the ideal time to think about whether you could be that difference.”
Fatima Whitbread MBE (pictured), Former British Champion Javelin thrower and Essex mum.
During Fostering Fortnight (14 -27 May) we will have stands at the following venues from 10am to 3pm. Drop in for some information and an informal chat.
- Monday 14 May, Epping High Street, Epping
- Tuesday 15 May, Waitrose, St Andrews Avenue, Colchester
- Wednesday 16 May, Tescos, Market Place, Braintree
- Wednesday 16 May, Morrisons, Centenary Way, Little Clacton
- Thursday 17 May, Asda, Eastgate Shopping Centre, Basildon
- Monday 21 May, Loughton Library, Traps Hill
- Thursday 24 May, Harlow Water Gardens Shopping Centre
- Saturday 26 May, High Chelmer Shopping Centre, Chelmsford
We need all kinds of people to become foster carers for all types of children.
We place around 800 children a year in foster homes. Without a suitable foster family available locally, children sometimes have to be placed a long way from their school and home.
We welcome foster carers from different backgrounds with all kinds of skills. We particularly need foster carers who can look after older children, children with disabilities and brothers and sisters.
Fostering means caring for someone else’s child or children
Foster children do not become the full legal responsibility of their foster carers. Foster carers share responsibility for the child they look after with the local authority and the child’s parents.
There are many different types of foster care. Fostering placements can range from as little as a few weeks to a few years but in a minority of cases some children are fostered until they grow up. You can read about some of the
different types of placements or watch a video of existing foster carers talking about their experience below.
Why should you foster?
Choosing to foster is going to be one of the most important decisions you will ever make. Being a foster carer isn’t always easy but the rewards are huge.
You will be helping some of Essex’s most vulnerable young people. Knowing that you can change a child’s life forever can give a tremendous amount of satisfaction.
Learn more about fostering
To learn more, please fill in our
enquiry form. You can also find more information on the following pages: