Darlington Foster Carers Association is being set up to give help and support to foster parents who need it. Helen Clyde is the voice for the association and has been fostering children for the last three and a half years. “Being a foster carer can be quite difficult and very isolating,” she said. “It has been set up to give foster carers in Darlington a voice, and to work in partnership with Darlington Borough Council to improve the quality of care we can provide for the children and young people we look after.”
There are around 50 foster families in Darlington but more are needed.
“We will support each other and work together. At the moment, if people have issues, it can be difficult to say anything. We hope this will give people a voice,” says Helen.
The association is hoping to be self-funding; they propose to do this through fundraising and volunteers. This will hopefully help them save enough money to cover its set up costs.
Jenny Chapman, the Darlington MP, is also supporting the association saying “Foster carers do an incredible job, but a very tough job.”.
“The support they get from local authorities can make a big difference to how many stay as foster carers. It can be very difficult, as an individual carer, to get your voice heard. Hopefully, this group will help carers address that.”