A NEW network of eight Yorkshire fostering departments has been set up to encourage more people to take up part and full-time fostering.

Foster4YourCouncil is a new partnership of eight Yorkshire Council Fostering Departments at Bradford, Calderdale, Leeds, Kirklees, Wakefield, North Yorkshire, York and Hull.

By fostering for their local Council people ensure that children and young people in care can continue to live within their communities staying close to their families and attending their local schools.

All Council fostering departments are 100 per cent not-for-profit, which means all resources are spent on supporting children in care and their carers.

The Foster4YourCouncil.org website will be launched this Sunday with joint online recruitment events and a celebratory event being held in 2021 and 2022.

The Councils involved hope that be working together in positive partnership, we can encourage more people and families to step forward to foster our most vulnerable children.

If you are considering fostering or know somebody who is, they can visit www.Foster4YourCouncil.org for more information and to register their interest. Councillor Sue Duffy, Portfolio Holder for Children & Families said: “We’re 100 per cent committed to changing the lives of children and young people in the Bradford district and across Yorkshire.

“Working on this new initiative with the other 7 authorities involved in Foster4YourCouncil will benefit children in care and will better enable children to stay in their community.

“I’m pleased, we as a Council, are supporting this latest campaign to increase the number and diversity of foster carers recruited directly to local authorities.

“This will undoubtedly give us more choice when matching a child; finding the right fostering family for each child is key to our ultimate goal of building brighter futures for children in our care.

“Becoming a foster carer is a decision to help make a real difference to the lives of children. There are hundreds of children across Yorkshire right now who have a right to thrive and need somebody in their community to support and believe in them.

“I hope someone reading this today will decide to enquire about becoming a foster carer.

“We are looking for foster carers from all walks of life to foster – you can be single, married or in a civil partnership, own or rent your home, have children or not.

“We need foster carers for children of all ages and backgrounds, including groups of brothers and sisters, children with disabilities and older children and teenagers.

“We offer excellent training and a market-leading financial package in recognition of the skills, commitment and support foster carers provide.

“I would urge anyone who is considering fostering to take a look at Foster4YourCouncil.org”