In this episode, we explore how foster parents strengthen communities, support children, and work closely with local services to create lasting change.

We sit down with Theresa, a foster parent from Fosterplus in Gloucestershire and Jim, who is responsible for a number of our individual fostering agencies here at Polaris. We will explore how foster parents help shape stronger, safer, and more supportive communities across the UK.

From building trust with birth families to navigating complex care needs, this conversation highlights the real experiences and incredible impact foster parents make every day.

What we cover:

- How foster carers support wider communities

- Why collaboration with professionals is essential

- The challenges and rewards of long-term care

- Practical advice for future foster parents

Thinking about becoming a foster parent but not sure where to start?

In this episode of Let’s Talk About Fostering, host Faye chats with Alison, a single foster parent with Foster Care Associates, about what it’s really like at the very beginning of your fostering journey.

Alison has been fostering teenagers since 2017. She talks honestly about leaving her job after 32 years, going through the assessment and panel process, the training, and what it felt like to welcome a young person into her home for the very first time.

In this episode, we cover:

- What to think about if you’re right at the start of your fostering journey

- Why you don’t have to fit a “perfect” mould to foster

- The reality of the assessment and panel process

- What training looks like – and why you don’t need experience to begin

- How it feels to say yes to your first foster child

- The importance of support networks and community for foster carers

- Why teenagers in care need understanding, empathy and playfulness