New festive campaign celebrates the best of fostering
An advent calendar style campaign which highlights the joys of fostering is running throughout December.
Lancashire County Council is one of 25 local authorities across the nation who have joined forces for the ‘Opening Doors to Fostering’ campaign, led by Bolton Council.
The campaign sees all the authorities sharing a video each day from Friday, December 1 to Christmas Day, created by each of the councils, which highlights one of their exemplary foster carers.
This gives the carers the opportunity to explain in their own words what fostering means to them and to show the impact they can make to children and young people who need a safe, stable, warm home.
Lancashire County Council's video, which tells foster carer Denise's story, will be shared on the authority's social media accounts on Facebook and Twitter to kick off the campaign on Friday, December 1.
In the video, Denise talks about how meaningful it is to foster young mums with their babies, teaching them the vital life skills they need to care for their newborns.
Opening doors to fostering : Denise's story
Denise said: "I've been fostering for around 17 years now. I tend to support mums straight from hospital with their new babies.
"It gives them an opportunity to have a traditional Christmas like we have, because a lot of our mums haven't really experienced Christmas as we know it.
"It's nice to be able to do the Christmas lunch, have baby here with her and to do the traditional Santa Claus visit. It's lovely to see them together."
County Councillor Cosima Towneley, cabinet member for Children and Families said: "This festive campaign is another example of the wonderful job that foster carers do during the Christmas season and all year round.
"It is the central focus of our Lancashire fostering community, to make sure the remarkable children in our care are supported on their individual journeys to their best life. That is at the heart of what we do at the council.
"This takes on a special poignancy around Christmas with its emphasis on family, new beginnings and dreams.
"To help us make new beginnings and dreams come true, we urgently need more foster carers across the country but I would especially ask Lancashire residents to give especial thought to giving their time and opening their home to children in our care.
"If you have what it takes to help a child in Lancashire with a loving, stable home, make a difference and go to our fostering website or call 0300 123 6723 to find out more."
You can see the full 'Opening Doors to Fostering' campaign on:
Facebook: @LancashireCC