Foster care
What is it like when your mum or dad become foster carers?
Kids often have lots of different feelings (some good and some a bit harder to deal with) when their parents foster other kids. It can be tricky having someone you don't know come and live in your home. So, it is important that kids talk to their mum or dad about what it is like for them, especially if they are worried or feeling sad about the changes at home.
Here are some things kids have said about sharing their homes and their parents with foster brothers or sisters:
- Sharing their parents time can be difficult
- Kids who go into foster care often feel sad or angry about the reasons they can't live with their own Mum or Dad. Sometimes they let those feelings out by behaving in difficult ways that can make life tricky for everyone in the family
- Having more kids around to play with can be fun
- Having foster kids helps them to appreciate their own homes and families more
- Learning how to care for younger children can be great fun
- It gives them an opportunity to meet and care about kids outside their family and friends
- Many kids whose parents foster kids say that they would like to become foster parents themselves when they grow up