Katy is a Hampshire teenager who has had a challenging time of it for most of her young life. She had spent time in foster care during her childhood and needed a long-term fostering family to care for her and provide a loving home where she could feel safe and start to build trusting relationships.
Having been through an unsettling period in her younger years with inconsistent care from different family members, Katy was frustrated and needed support and understanding to work through the difficulties she was experiencing.
Mark and Ester are foster carers who heard about Katy and her experiences. They felt they could offer her stability and show her that adults can be trusted and be there for her.
Welcomed by Mark and Ester’s family, Katy moved into the family home. There were challenges and naturally Katy was hesitant to trust at first. However, by taking things at Katy’s pace and showing her they could be relied upon, Mark and Ester were able to build wonderful relationships with her. Katy is now an integral part of the family dynamic.
Katy has brought joy to Mark and Ester’s family and has continued to thrive – she attends school consistently, has caught up on her education, started new hobbies and made positive friendships.
Though initially difficult, Katy’s story brings hope to many young people who, just like she did, need carers who can support them and provide the safety and stability they need to reach their potential.
There are many children like Katy who are waiting for the same opportunities. A child comes into Hampshire care every 12 hours and Fostering Hampshire Children needs 150 more foster care households this year. Could you foster someone like Katy?
Could you open your door to a foster child this year?
Our Foster Carers are a wonderful group of people from a range of backgrounds, who support some of Hampshire’s most vulnerable children through the bad times and the good.
Fostering isn’t always easy; there are challenges to overcome and difficult days, but it’s also a chance to build new relationships, learn about other cultures and – most importantly - offer stability to a young person when it’s needed most.
Our foster carers receive extensive training and support throughout their fostering journey that is tailored to their needs and the needs of our children and young people. Your social worker is there to guide and support you throughout your fostering journey. The peer-to-peer support networks are second to none, and are also there to help and advise you, whatever the issue.
Hampshire is also providing a new kind of support for foster carers and children they care for, in the form of a support network known as the Hampshire Hive. The Hampshire Hive will give our foster carers and children they care for guidance, practical and emotional support at a community level.
You can find out more about Fostering Hampshire Children at www.hants.gov.uk/fostering or contact them via [email protected] or 01489 587052.