“Fostering Made Our Family Bigger"

We are Dan and Chris, and we’ve been together for 24 years. In that time, we’ve raised our own children, who are now adults, and we’re lucky enough to have four grandchildren who keep us smiling. Our fostering journey started long before we ever thought of ourselves as foster carers. We began as kinship carers, taking in a family member who needed a stable home. He lived with us until he was 19 and he’ll always be our bonus son. We still keep in regular contact and he’s very much part of our family.

Eventually we became mainstream foster carers. The first child we cared for was a baby who later went on to adoption. After that we cared for a pair of siblings, who also moved on to their adoptive family. Now we care long‑term for teenage siblings who have become an important part of our everyday life. Each child has brought something different into our home, and each goodbye or new beginning has shaped us in its own way.

A huge part of our fostering journey has been joining a Mockingbird constellation. Our group includes seven families and thirteen children, and over time we’ve all become friends who genuinely support each other.

 Not long after joining, we took on the role of hub carers. That means we’re there to offer support in lots of different ways: taking children to clubs, offering sleepovers, helping out with activities, and doing all the fun things that help create memories and giving carers a well-deserved break. 

We’re always at the end of the phone for the adults in the group too, whether it’s for advice, reassurance, joining in the children’s care reviews and Personal Education Plan (PEP) reviews, or simply catching up over a brew.

Our lives are very busy, but they’re incredibly rewarding. Mockingbird has been a massive success for us as a group. Families don’t feel isolated. There’s always someone to turn to. Children form friendships without judgment, and they get to feel part of a wider family. We meet up regularly for activity days, which keeps everyone connected and supported.

We would encourage anyone who’s thinking about fostering to just go for it. It’s emotionally rewarding and you’ll never be on your own. There are ups and downs, of course, but there is a huge support network around you. We have fantastic social workers and emotional health and wellbeing workers who check in regularly, and that makes a big difference. 

Seeing young people thrive, grow in confidence and live their lives to the fullest is worth its weight in gold. Fostering has made our family bigger than we ever imagined, and we wouldn’t change a thing.