Carers' conference
The Foster Carers’ Conference is hosted and widely attended by foster carers and social workers. Every year there is a theme chosen which addresses issues or theories which are relevant to fostering. There is a guest speaker who delivers a keynote speech and foster carers and social workers are given the opportunity to attend a number of themed workshops, learning together and providing inspiration and ideas of how to address and manage issues that may help to help children and young people develop and manage the fostering household.
The Conference is hosted either virtually or face to face and a resource pack is shared with all participants afterwards. Foster carers are encouraged to network and make new, or renew existing, connections with other foster carers who can provide them with peer support and advice. The team is also on hand throughout the day to talk to and take feedback about life as a foster carer and any suggestions for improvement or new ideas.
Appreciation event
Fostering is a unique role and we feel as a fostering service, that our foster carers need to be recognised for all of the hard work that they do. The annual celebration awards recognises milestones and the time committed to fostering and the dedication of our foster carers to the children of Coventry.
The early evening event starts with the foster carers arriving and having the opportunity to socialise with each other and with members of the fostering team. The Lord Mayor, local councillors and senior managers also attend to take the opportunity to speak with foster carers, asking them about their experiences since they started fostering, their achievements and anything that we could do to improve the support and service we offer. In 2022, a buffet was provided for all attendees. The Lord Mayor and others will formally address the fostering families, recognising the hard work that foster carers do, reiterating how the Council values our foster carers and commending the dedication and emphasising what a difference they can make to young lives.
Long service and other awards are then presented to foster carers as appropriate.
Support for children whose parents foster
Saturday Club
See you at Xcel Leisure Centre in Coventry! Speak to your supervising social worker for further details
Get more details and book your place online [/saturdayclub]
We know that the decision to become a foster carer involves the whole family. Children have to share their parents, their home and their toys with children coming into the home, as well as sometimes having to cope with some difficult and challenging behaviours. Despite these challenges, many children of foster carers say that being part of a foster family has had a positive impact on them, and helped them to understand others better and to have more empathy with people in different situations.
As a Service, we are really pleased to announce that we launched a new group on Saturday 28 January for your children to attend on a monthly basis. The aim of this is for the children of foster carers to have the opportunity to meet and socialise with other children who share similar experiences. This will also provide peer support for the children of foster carers and hopefully they will have some fun. The group is split into two different ages, 5-9 years one month and 10-17 the following month. By attending this group, it gives us the chance to meet and get to know your children and hear how we can help support them within the fostering family.
Our Winter event
The Fostering Service organises an event each year in appreciation and as a thank you to our foster carers to acknowledge their hard work and achievements for the year. Present at this event will be the Lord Mayor and key councillors responsible for children and families, alongside senior managers from the Looked After Children service and members of staff from the Fostering Service.
It is a wonderful way to get into the festive spirit, enjoy some food and a hot drink, and a great opportunity to get together with the wider fostering community and network with others.
One of our carers said:
"It was good to be introduced to people I normally only speak to on the phone and to catch up with other foster carers".
We recognise that our foster carers and their families do an amazing job to manage this period of time where situations can at times become difficult and sensitive. They aim to create positive memories for the children and young people that they care for, whilst trying to balance this against the usual busyness of the time of year and the needs of their own birth family.