This film was created in collaboration with over 100 local authorities, including us, Derby City Council, Derbyshire County Council and Nottingham City Council.

We are delighted here in fostering as it is finally the right time to  discuss all things Christmas and to share our date for the foster carers’ Christmas party! 

Thursday 5 December 2024, 11am to 1pm at Calverton Village Hall, William Lee Memorial Park, Park Rd, Nottingham NG14 6SA.

There will be party food, Christmas music, a raffle and some activities for the children who attend.

Please email your FSO to confirm your attendance, including any children that will be attending, and if you have any dietary or accessibility requirements.

Did you know that as a foster carer with us, you're eligible for a 10% discount on a range of fantastic activities with Notts Outdoors? This includes:

• The Mill Adventure Base Holiday Club
• The Duke of Edinburgh Programme
• First Aid Training
• Short Breaks at our Peak District Accommodation
• All sessions booked at the family-based Adventures

Ready to take advantage of this great offer? Simply contact us at nottsoutdoors@nottscc.gov.uk for your discount code.

Let’s help you and your family to explore the great outdoors, have fun and create lifelong memories! 

Care to Dance sessions are open to our children and young people aged 7-24 on Wednesday evenings at Create Theatre, Mansfield. Care to Dance is an inclusive dance group and covers a range of dance genres.

Care to Dance runs social and celebration events for the group throughout the year. It is a great opportunity for self-expression, trying something new, meeting new people and making friends.

Here’s what people have said about Care to Dance:

Young person - “I love attending Care to Dance. We are like one big family.”
Carer - "I feel that Care to Dance has given my young person much more confidence and she has made some lovely new friends. She also really enjoys dancing and being a part of the group”.

To find out more, please contact Beth: beth@caretodance.co.uk

It is that time of year for our young people in year 11 to visit college open days and make post-16 applications for September 2025.

We encourage you to visit multiple colleges and settings so that young people have a range of options and can make informed decisions, taking course entry requirements into consideration.

For young people with EHCPs, applications need to be made to preferred settings, alongside consultations made by EHCP coordinators.

More information about some local open days can be found on our website.

Every month, the strengths-based practice team shares a ‘word of the month’, as part of its aim to replace commonly-used words and phrases with strengths-based language.

The language is based on research projects involving children, young people, parents, carers and staff. We think these are really useful to us in fostering too, so we'll be sharing them here.

October’s word of the month was Respite.

Alternative phrases:

• The young person needs to recuperate after caring for their parent in addition to their other responsibilities.
• The young person’s parent needs to take some time for themselves.
• The carer needs a period of rest to be able to meet [the person’s] needs fully.
• The young person needs time away from their carers for a change of environment.
• The young person needs to have new experiences away from the family home.

A common definition of respite is ‘a short break from something unpleasant or difficult’. If a young person in care knows someone who cares for them takes or needs respite, it could suggest to them that they are a burden. 

Thank you for your patience and cooperation with the interim training system whilst the My Learning My Career (MLMC) platform is not available. We are still waiting an update about when the new training platform (Kallidus) will be in place. The platform is managed within the local authority, outside of fostering and whilst we understand your frustration we have no control over the transfer. As soon as we are aware of any details then we will let you know.

In the interim, please continue to book on any training through Fosteringtrainingcoordinator@nottscc.gov.uk. 

Our up-to-date training brochure is always available online - download it using the button below. This will give you information as to courses, dates, and times for when you would like to book on. Availability of training will still be sent to you monthly, for easy access whilst MLMC is not available, to supplement the brochure, so watch out for emails from the Fostering Training Coordinator.

Thanks for all the feedback you have given us through the recent conference and survey. This is supporting us to review our training offer for the next financial year. We value what you do and want to make the training relevant and informative. Your input helps us to try and get the right mix of topics and ensure we choose the right balance of weekend, evening and daytime training offers. We hope to consult with you further over the coming months.

Research in practice

This is an online social care training provider of very good quality training, offering webinars, digital programmes and written information. We have just been informed that they are now available to NCC foster carers and is currently developing a specialist selection aimed at staying put, kinship and foster carers.

The provider will attend a future FLAG meeting to discuss the information available for you, so watch this space for further information.

We will send out step-by-step information about how to set up your account. Your supervising social worker or fostering support officer can support with this task if you are unsure.

We love to hear from our foster carers so please check out this lovely poem from one of our foster carers on their experience of the recruitment process.

The foster carer is right, you need to trust the process to make the difference to a young person’s life.

Trust the Process

It started with a discussion, a family chat.
Then we registered our interest and that was that.
Onto the checks, courses and stuff.
I'm not going to lie the process can be tough.

They go through your life with a fine-tooth comb.
To make sure your house can be a good foster home.
When all the reports are done it's off to panel to see.
If you're suitable to become a foster parent like me.

When they have talked, they report what they find.
To the agency decision maker who will make up his mind.
Wow you're approved, now this can be daunting.
What if you get things wrong, these thoughts can be haunting.

The wait could be long or short and sweet.
Then you get a call there's a young person to meet.
Now it's real the nerves keep you alert.
What has this child been through, their mental hurt.

Will it be hard to be a carer and report.
Do not worry your social worker will support.
You might be wondering is it worth all the trouble and strife.
I'm here to say yes, you have a chance to positively change a young life!