This week, Sarah and Louise go full investigative mode on a brutal few days for foster carers, and the uncomfortable truths that slipped out of power.

After the now viral “you don’t work / it’s not a job” moment exposed what the government really thinks of carers, they unpack why this isn’t just offensive, it’s catastrophic for retention, recruitment, and trust in the system. From a hastily arranged DfE/TFN webinar that felt more like stage-managed theatre than genuine consultation, to inflated attendance figures, familiar talking points, and the same old “nothing new” reform scripts… the gaslighting is getting harder to ignore.

They also dig into the quietly terrifying suggestion to remove Supervising Social Workers and replace them with children’s social workers, presented as an “innovation” that carers will apparently love. Spoiler: carers consistently say the SSW is their strongest professional relationship. So who exactly is advising this, and why does it feel like policy creep in real time?

Then it’s onto recruitment marketing, the cupcakes and sprinkles fantasy of fostering ads, the infantilisation of carers, the “all you need is love and a spare room” nonsense, and how this kind of messaging lowers standards, misleads the public, and damages children.

Angry. Informed. Uncomfortable listening. This one’s a journalistic analysis of how the system performs care while quietly dismantling the workforce that holds it together.

Contact: info@fosterwiki.com

Centre for Homelessness Impact:

[Sanders, Michael, Vanessa Hirneis, Kira Ewanich and Vanessa Picker. The Impacts of the Mockingbird Family Model for Young People Leaving Care An Evaluation Using Matching and Difference-in-Differences. London, United Kingdom: Centre for Homelessness Impact. 2025. www.homelessnessimpact.o/rg/publication/mockingbird-the-family-model-for-young-people-leaving-care. last accessed 18/02/2026]

All views shared in this podcast reflect the personal opinions of the hosts alone. They are not intended as factual assertions about any person or organisation, nor do they represent the views of any employer or professional body.