Having blogged for many years about fostering and raising children I have more recently looked at ways in which adults and young people can achieve happiness and contentment. Last time we looked at taking responsibility for our lives and this time I would look at what can be achieved when we do so.

Hello and welcome to the latest update from the policy and campaigns team at The Fostering Network.

It's not every day your name is mentioned in the same breath as the likes of Lily Allen, Dame Jilly Cooper, and Princess Anne. Which is why respite foster carer, Vanessa Worrall, has every reason to be proud after being nominated in Citizen and Echo’s list of Gloucestershire’s 50 Greatest Women of All Time. 

Vanessa has made a name for herself working in the community as a youth worker and now project manager at Together In Matson for two decades. Two years ago, she brought all her experience and knowledge of working with young people to the table and became a carer with Community Foster Care. The Fostering Network catches up with Vanessa to hear what she has to say about fostering.

Picking up from where we left off on part one of our young champions blog, here’s Cherise and Jak talking about their experiences with the programme.

The great, late, Nelson Mandela once said that ‘the youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow.’ This is, of course true, but we like to think that young people are also the leaders of today which is why we have been so pleased to have had our young champions in Scotland come on board to influence decision-making and undertake awareness-raising activities.

Sue McKellar, project worker on our Young Champions programme, catches up with some of the participants for some feedback of their involvement, which will be documented in this three-part blog series.

We all need a break to ‘get away from it all,’ and that’s what holidays are there for. Whether it’s caravanning it through the countryside in the middle of spring, or a summer getaway to Ibiza, we are practically spoilt for choice when it comes to finding the perfect spot to spend some quality time with our foster children or young people.

Universities across the UK are striving to engage more care leavers with higher education. Here Transitions Team leader at De Montfort University, Melissa Page, explains why this is so important and what her university is seeking to do to reach more care leavers.

Having blogged for many years about fostering and raising children I have more recently looked at ways in which adults and young people can achieve happiness and contentment. Last time we looked at how we can turn the corner and move on after a negative experience. This time I’d like to look at taking responsibility for our lives.

Our Mockingbird programme is growing rapidly, with new constellations (fostering households gathered around a hub home which offers planned and emergency respite, advice, training and support) popping up across the country. One of the unexpected joys of the programme is the emergence of the important role played by ‘hub animals’: pets that were part of the household before the family took on the role of the hub home and have now become a much loved member of the wider constellation family. The presence of these animals within the hub home adds to the variety of experiences for children and young people - and often provides another important relationship to support young people to learn new skills and confidences. We are collecting some great stories about the impact of pets living in the satellite homes – with some even accompanying children and young people at sleepovers in the hub home!