Kirklees Together

During Foster Care Fortnight, we encouraged people from across the district to come forward and consider fostering.

Foster Care Fortnight 

This year’s theme was #ThisisFostering and the team ran a virtual campaign on social media throughout the fortnight.

Special messages thanked our existing foster carers for their continued commitment to looked after children, as well as encouraging people to get in touch and find out more about fostering.

The campaign received support from many people, including existing foster carers and Cllr Shabir Pandor (Leader of Kirklees Council), Cllr Viv Kendrick (Cabinet member for Children), Cllr Carole Pattison (Cabinet member for Learning, Aspiration and Communities), Jacqui Gedman (Chief Executive), Mel Meggs (Strategic Director for Children’s Services) and Tom Brailsford (Service Director for Resources, Improvement and Partnerships)

Is Covid-19 impacting fostering? 

Due to the Covid-19 crisis, some families are struggling to cope and there is a national increase in children’s care proceedings. Sadly, this means there will be increased demand for foster care placements and the shortage of carers is being felt more deeply than ever.

Could you provide local children and young people, who are unable to live with their birth families, a loving, safe and stable home? We need more people to embark on their journey to becoming Kirklees foster carers to ensure we can keep children in their local area, near school, friends and family.

Cllr Viv Kendrick, Cabinet Member for Children, said:

“Foster caring can be challenging, yet it is immensely rewarding, fulfilling and fun. Carers often say it’s the best thing they’ve ever done.

It can be an emotional and confusing time for children when they come into the care system. These children, through no fault of their own, find themselves uprooted from everything they know and need the stability that only a loving foster family can provide. We have an urgent need for more foster carers, so please get in touch with the team.”

Are you interested in fostering? 

Foster carers are needed for children of all ages. There are different schemes to suit different individual and family circumstances and we’re looking for people who can offer short or long term care, part-time care or who are able to support and prepare our care leavers to achieve independence.

What is right for one child might not be right for another, so we are urging people from all backgrounds and all walks of life to consider fostering.  We’re looking for people who have space in their home – and their heart – for a young person and can offer them a positive and loving home environment. By becoming a foster carer, people have the opportunity to change a young person’s life.

Contact us 

You can email us at fostering@kirklees.gov.uk or call 0800 389 0086 to have a friendly chat with the team. More details can be found on our website.