In foster care, what matters most is providing a safe and caring home for children who need it. Your sexual orientation doesn’t change your ability to offer love, support, and stability. Whether you’re LGBTQ+ or not, what counts is creating a positive environment where kids can grow and thrive. What matters most is the love and care you provide, regardless of who you are.
We caught up with Claire and Heather, a same sex couple who had their doubts before exploring the fostering route due to their sexuality but have been welcomed into the team and have made a huge difference to children’s lives.
Fostering was always something I wanted to do even when I was young. I got made redundant from my home carer job and I enquired about fostering and that’s when the journey started – 14 years ago. I was a little bit wary of becoming a foster carer, I was initially dubious as a same sex couple because I didn’t think there were many in our situation that fostered, but I needn’t have worried because we were welcomed with open arms. I had a lot of questions in the initial stages but found out all the information I needed from the team.
To me, fostering a child means those children in need of a loving home get the support and love that they deserve. We love caring for the children, some children have been through so much in their young lives, the deserve the best, we give them lots of love.
You do get financially rewarded as a foster carer but it’s not about this for us. If we won the lottery, we would be living in a mansion and helping as many children as we could. If you have a lot of love, patience and are prepared to open your home you should think about fostering. Your life does change when you become a foster carer, but you are also changing so many young lives for the better.
If you are thinking of becoming a foster carer, don’t hold back. Go for it, follow your heart because you can change children’s lives.
If reading Claire and Heather’s story has encouraged you to think about becoming a foster carer, then we’d love to hear from you.
Living in Cardiff, Wales? Send us a message and we will get back to you as soon as we can.
If you live elsewhere in Wales, visit the Foster Wales website where you can find all the information and contact your local authority service.
