Search is on for good family homes

Wednesday 05 November 2014

Jersey’s fostering and adoption team are hoping to find more homes for teenagers and children with special needs.

As part of National Adoption Week they'll be profiling three of the children they need to find families for with the help of local media.

The photos and names of the children profiled won't be real but their stories will and the team want to recruit more Islanders who can commit to looking after them long-term.

Senior Social worker Sarah Michael said: "They are the types of children that might need a family. It's a real child, it's real - it's a good way of recruiting, you've got a bit of the story of the child, that little bit extra that makes you pick up the phone, it's a connection."

This week they will be opening up their pop-in shop at 62 Halkett Place, opposite Pizza Express and the team hope it will be the first step towards finding what Sarah calls "forever families". She said they want to dispel the myth that they are ageist or that fostering or adopting is going to be too hard a task.

She said: "We are looking for all sorts of people so please don’t think we’ll turn you down because you’re over 40, single, or don’t own your own home. What we really need are people who can offer a child or brothers and sisters a loving and supportive family for life. We need people who can help a child recover from the reasons why they came in to care and can help them go on to thrive in a new family.”

Older children they find harder to place in homes and Sarah said they want to get the message across that many teenagers just need a good one in order to thrive.

She said: “Although adoption for older children is generally not suitable, at this crucial time in their lives they can benefit enormously from a secure base with foster carers who can help them to move to independence once the time is right.

“While providing a permanent home for a child is a rewarding experience, this can also be challenging at times. In recognition of this the Fostering and Adoption Team offers extensive preparation, training and ongoing support to islanders who want to consider this.”

This year the Health department introduced a new skills based payment system to encourage more carers to sign up as foster parents. As well as the weekly expense allowance that carers already receive, they now get paid depending on their experience and skills, but it could be as much as £275 a week.

The drop-in centre is open on Friday and Saturday from 9.30 am until 4 pm.