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Hello and welcome to the February edition of fostering news for 2023. Are you as pleased as us that February is finally here? January seems so long, it’s always a relief to us when February comes along and the days start getting longer!
More daylight boosts mood, gives us more time to be out and about doing things we enjoy, and can help us get a better night’s sleep.
Before you dash away in search of daylight, take a quick coffee break and check out this month’s newsletter where you will find details of free swimming lessons, news about a brilliant new support group for secondary carers being pioneered in the north of the county and information to remind you and the children you look after about the Children in Care Council, alongside the usual training updates and news from the achievement service.
Thanks for reading 😊
Free swimming lessons for children in care
We are excited to share that our Swimming for Schools team is offering free swimming lessons for all children in care aged 3 months to 16 years.
Children can join at any time of the year and lessons take place in Nottinghamshire school term time at venues around the county.
Parents/carers are expected to actively support their child during all the sessions, which could mean direct 1:1 support for their child if they are otherwise unable to access the session safely and positively.
Your child’s social worker will need to make a referral for them to be able to access the provision so please get in touch with them and take advantage of this brilliant offer.
Be quick as places will be limited!
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Young People’s Voices
The Children in Care Council are looking for new members for their Young People’s Voices groups.
The groups are a chance for children and young people to meet up with their peers, have fun, make friends and help to shape the way services work with them by having their say.
There are three groups:
- Juniors (8-12 years)
- Seniors (13-16 years)
- Care Leavers (16-21 yrs)
If your child or young person is interested, please get in touch with Emma Betteridge via email: Emma.Betteridge@nottscc.gov.uk
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Secondary carer support group in Bassetlaw - monthly meetings for social and support
At a training event in 2022 there was a suggestion to create a men's support group for foster carers. Two foster carers got together with supervising social worker Sandra Dickinson in the last quarter of 2022 and planned out a group session. We held our first session in January with a number of carers and Sandra attending.
The purpose of the group, which has been formed to support all secondary carers in a social setting, is to share experiences, give support and discuss things that help each other to work through issues and or talk through topics connected with care, family and or access to professionals who can support .
The group is no longer gender specific, and anyone is welcome to attend
The sessions are open and relaxed, with no expectation of attending all meetings, and usually food and drink is involved. The support group welcomes care professionals but can function independently. One of our goals is to figure out how we can create a process that gives secondary carers training hours, which is a challenge for all of us.
Our next meeting is Thursday 18 February. 6.30 - 7pm at the Olive Grove Restaurant on Bridge Street in Worksop. Anyone wanting to attend please let us know and we will add you to our list of members.
For more information, please get in touch with Owen Jervis via email: Ojervis@hotmail.com.
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FLAG meeting
The FLAG meeting recently took place and the minutes are now available. The next meeting is planned for Monday 24 April at 7pm. Please put the date in your diary and we will include the link in a newsletter nearer the date.
Use the button below to read the minutes.
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Events at Nottingham Playhouse
Employability Briefing
Tuesday 28 February, 11.30am - 1.30pm
The achievement team have organised an employability briefing at Nottingham Playhouse. It will be a great insight into all aspects of theatre from performance, stage and costume design, lighting engineering, marketing and seeing behind the scenes.
There will be advisors from the achievement service there and help can be provided to cover transport costs.
Any of our care experienced young people from that are currently studying drama, performing arts, theatre, engineering, design, media, music, IT or similar subjects in school, college, training or university would really benefit from attending this. Any other care experienced young people that are just interested in the arts and creative industries and thinking about this as a future post-16 choice are more than welcome!
To book a place, email Rebecca.Dixon@nottscc.gov.uk or Achievement@nottscc.gov.uk
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Rootz drama groups
There are also regular drama groups taking place at the playhouse. Rootz are groups aimed at young people with experience in care ages 13-21 years. They are drama sessions that support and develop their social and intrapersonal skills as they transition into adult life. The group is open to all theatrical interests (writing, directing, acting, music etc.) and the participants have an opportunity to perform on the main stage in the summer. They also get free tickets to 2 shows a year, a backstage tour of the theatre and industry talks.
Training Updates
Recent problems with the link from the Foster Carer’s Handbook to the Nottinghamshire Childcare Procedures Online have now been resolved.
In case you are new here or haven’t recently been on there, this is the link to the FC Handbook Nottinghamshire Foster Carers Handbook.
The latest training update is available on the foster carer’s website.
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