All children who need foster care are unique. They can be lone children or siblings needing to live together. They can be any age from birth to eighteen. Some of the children will only need to be accommodated for a night or two whilst the family sort out their problems, but others may need to live permanently away from their families.
All of the children will have experienced disruption, and separation from their families. Some will have experienced emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse or neglect. These life experiences mean children will have complex needs and some may have challenging behaviour.
We will provide information about the child you are asked to foster, initially based on what we know of the child and their background, parents and others who know the family. With some children we may have very limited information and with others we can give you more detail. The child’s behaviour can tell you a lot, and what the child says will help contribute to your understanding of their situation. Working together with the team of people involved with the child, you will support children to overcome their difficult experiences.
The majority of fostered children will be in contact with their families, and foster carers need to support these arrangements. Because of this and the need for Lewisham children to remain in local education, we need carers local to Lewisham borough.
One of the joys of fostering is that every child presents a new challenge, no two ever behave in the same way, or have the same talents and interests. Every child has the capacity to grow and develop to reach their full potential. The rewards for carers of seeing children progress whilst in their care is immense. The challenges can be immense too and the impact on you and your family’s life is not to be underestimated. Lewisham’s fostering team offer excellent support to our carers and will work with you to manage the challenges you will face.