A government minister visited Bracknell and Wokingham this week to support their collective drive to recruit more foster carers.
Wokingham Borough Council and Bracknell Forest Council have joined forces with 18 other authorities across the southeast to create the largest fostering recruitment partnership in the country.
They want to increase the number of foster carers across the region, which currently has more than 11,000 children in care but fewer than 3,000 approved foster carers.
Janet Daby, the new Minister for Children and Families visited the new hub in Bracknell on Wednesday, July 31, before meeting foster carers in Wokingham.
She met with Sue and Les, who are hub home carers for the council’s Mockingbird programme, launched in the Wokingham Borough last year.
Mockingbird brings together a group of foster families to form a support network for each other, providing additional support and guidance.
Janet Daby said: “It was great to hear how the brilliant Mockingbird programme brings foster families together in extended support networks in the Wokingham borough, helping make fostering more appealing.
“We’re committed to improving the experience of foster carers and ensuring that every possible opportunity is available to children growing up in care to give them better life chances.”
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