Putting You in the Picture

About the Book

Foster carers, also called foster parents, invest invaluable time and energy in providing a safe home environment for foster children. Fostering is frothed with challenges of various kinds. Yet, generally, foster carers affirm that fostering is the most rewarding work. Putting You in the Picture: Foster Carers Speak is a small-scale research project that provides readers with insight into the foster-care experience as seen from selected foster carers’ perspectives. It highlights inspiring experiences of how foster carers are able to make positive, life-changing differences to foster children’s lives. The book also reports on participant foster carers’ views on the staying-put initiative and makes practical suggestions to social workers and local authority (LA) officials. These two groups, as well as teachers, head teachers, foster-care professionals and concerned citizens will find this book quite informative. It is clear from all the research conversations undertaken that fostering is a demanding work of selflessness and love.

About the Author

Mohammed Lahrichi has been in the foster-caring field for more than ten years. His work with The Adolescent and Children’s Trust (TACT) and Parents for Children (PfC) over the years, together with his loving concern for children’s wellbeing, have adequately prepared and equipped him to foster-care in a masterful way. Mohammed continues to volunteer and participate in a variety of community activities. Sharon Lahrichi has gained foster caring experience from working with two organisations - TACT and Parents for Children (PfC). Her support-worker experiences with private companies and charitable organisations such as Leonard Cheshire and Jays Agency, have certainly complemented her foster-caring career. Dr Gertrude Shotte continues to show an engaging interest in fostering and foster carers’ matters. She is especially interested in the ‘Staying Put’ initiative that Local Authorities introduced in England in February 2014. Linked to this, is the Department for Education (DfE) statutory guidance, which provides added context for further research work in the fostering field.