Three of Barking and Dagenham’s foster carers share the stories behind their foster families and reveal what it’s like to be a foster carer in this London borough.

 

Alala

Emma

Michelle

Elizabeth

Elizabeth is one of Barking and Dagenham’s most experienced and skilled foster carers and has been fostering with the council since 2009. Most recently she was asked to become a Hub Home Carer as part of the Mockingbird Family Model which launched in 2017.

A Hub Home Carer provides support for a number of carers in close proximity to their home, including planned or emergency respite care, 24 hours seven days a week.

Javid

In 2006, Javid’s life one went from one extreme to the other. After a lot of persuasion from his wife, Javid was convinced to take the plunge and quit his city job working in finance to applying to become a foster carer. Since he made that switch over 10 years ago, he hasn’t looked back.

Joely

Joely has been a foster carer for Barking and Dagenham since 2015 and is one of the youngest carers in the area. Joely was training to become a teacher when she fell pregnant with her first child, so she put her studies on hold and began working in nurseries and children’s centres as these roles enabled more work-life balance so she could spend more time with her son.

After seeing fostering advertised around the borough, she was tempted to take the plunge and apply – and now she looks after children at her home instead of going to a place of work.