For many children, the last school bell before the summer holidays is an exciting thing, as they eagerly anticipate six weeks of freedom, sunny weather, and time spent with their loving family.
But for vulnerable children who live in unstable homes, school holidays can feel very different. Without the support and routine schools provide, including meals and a safe, caring environment, these children are more at risk of abuse, neglect, and isolation.
If a child moves into care during this time, foster carers have a wonderful opportunity to change the way they experience breaks from school. Join us as we explore the benefits of fostering a child and providing them a safe, supportive, and nurturing home this summer.
Why summer puts vulnerable children at risk
Schools safeguard children. From monitoring their attendance to recording concerns, schools play a vital role in keeping vulnerable children safe from harm.
When this safety net pauses for summer, it can have a significant impact on these children, putting them at risk, and here are some reasons why:
- Schools provide routine and structure, helping children feel safe. Whether it be one-to-one support or at least two meals a day, when school ends for summer, some children may not have their most basic needs met.
- Schools help children build connections. A child or young person may have formed a good relationship with a trusted teacher or have a strong friendship group they can rely on. When school is out for the summer, this support may become infrequent or stop altogether, leaving them isolated.
- Childcare costs can make it difficult for low-income families to find suitable arrangements for their children while they’re at work during the holidays. This means a child may be left to fend for themselves for hours every day, putting them at risk of getting hurt.
- When children and young people are at school, there is less time for them to get involved in risky behaviours, such as drinking alcohol or taking drugs. Without the distraction of school, teenagers who are struggling at home may turn to risky behaviours for fun or to numb their feelings.
- If a child is living in a volatile home, the summer holidays mean they have no escape, putting them at higher risk of abuse.
- Like schools, community support often breaks up for summer or runs less frequently, leaving children with even less support throughout the summer.
- A lack of support and routine, coupled with feeling isolated, can negatively impact the mental health of vulnerable children and young people.
How does foster care keep children safe?
Foster care provides children with a safe haven during the summer holidays and beyond.
The main reason children and young people move into care is because they have endured abuse or neglect. Foster carers keep these children safe, meeting their needs and nurturing their whole well-being so they can move out of survival mode, begin healing from their experiences, and have the childhood they deserve.
At FCA Scotland, our Team Parenting model means children and young people receive an even higher level of support. Our network of fostering professionals, including therapists, education leads, and social workers, all work closely with foster carers to support their individual needs. We also go out of our way to make sure children in our care never feel isolated by listening to them and encouraging them to form connections with children who truly understand where they’re coming from.
We aim to provide every vulnerable child and young person with a foundation that so many of us take for granted – a safe, loving, and nurturing home.
Benefits of helping children this summer
Becoming a foster carer will change both your life and a child’s as you begin this new chapter and grow together. Below are just some of the benefits of providing a safe home for children this summer.
Help children feel safe
Although providing a child with a foster home keeps them physically safe from harm, it takes patience, understanding, and consistency to help children feel truly secure.
Many children and young people who move into care are haunted by their past experiences, making it difficult for them to trust others and build connections. By fostering a child, you have a chance to show them that loving, trusting relationships really do exist, and we’ll help you do it.
When you join FCA Scotland, you’ll join our foster carer training programme, which will give you the knowledge and skills to understand what makes children feel safe in foster care. We offer both face-to-face and online training courses on topics such as Attachment and Child Development, Managing Difficult Behaviour and Complex Trauma, equipping you with the tools to care for children who’ve had a difficult start to life.
We’ll work with you to create a Personal Development Plan, helping you grow with each child in your care and prepare for every stage of your fostering journey.
Make summer a positive experience
By fostering a child this summer, you can help them see school holidays in a new light by creating happy memories together. Whether it be taking them to the beach and helping them build their first sandcastle or teaching them how to swim, the summer brings with it so many opportunities for your whole family to have fun.
At FCA Scotland, we also organise days out and fun activities for children in foster care, asking them to choose where they’d like to go. These trips help foster children connect with others, make friends, and relax in the company of safe and trusted adults.
Prevent risky behaviours
When young people feel isolated and lonely or are suffering from the trauma of their past experiences, they may turn to risky behaviours to numb their feelings, especially if they have nothing to distract them or if they aren’t working towards their healing.
When you foster a child during the summer, you can use the time they aren’t at school to help them begin their recovery journey. Although a school’s support may pause or lessen during the holidays, our support never stops – we’re here for our foster families 24/7.
If the child in your care needs a little extra support, our therapists can help young people understand their experiences and heal from them rather than depend on risky behaviours to mask their pain.
Support their emotional and mental health
Children in care are dealing with some heavy things, which can have a huge impact on their mental and emotional health. Children rely on their caregivers to teach them how to regulate their emotions, so if they’ve lived in a home where their emotional needs were often overlooked, they may struggle to manage and express their thoughts and feelings.
As a result, they need foster carers who know how to look beyond their behaviour to see what’s really going on and to help them find new ways of coping with their emotions. Self-regulation is a life skill that will not only benefit their relationships and schoolwork now but will also help them become more resilient to challenges throughout life.
Prepare them for the new school year
Fostering a child during the summer can help them feel more settled before the new term begins. If they move schools, it also gives them time to get to know the local community and look around the school before they start.
Although beginning a new year in a completely different school may fill them with anxiety and dread, you’ll be by their side, listening to their worries and guiding them through the process. They’ll also have help from our team, including our education coordinator, who will ensure a child has the right support and attends a school that understands their needs.
We believe that education plays a vital role in improving the outcomes for children in care, and together, we can help them thrive in the school environment.
Start a new career that truly makes a difference
As a foster carer, you’ll embark on an exciting new career journey where you’ll have opportunities to grow personally and professionally as you gain more experience. You’ll also receive a generous fostering allowance that’s typically tax-free and additional perks to help enrich your fostering journey, including:
- A £250 bonus in the summer and winter each year.
- Up to 14 nights of paid respite care.
- Gifts and experiences for every fostering milestone you reach.
- Recognition events and rewards that highlight your role as a foster carer.
- An annual appreciation bonus that rises every year you foster with us.
Supporting you this summer and beyond
One of the things that sets us apart from other fostering agencies in Scotland is the support we offer our foster families.
From the moment you enquire, we’ll be by your side, helping you understand the fostering process, pay, and training. When you first begin your fostering journey, you’ll also have additional support from a Carer Buddy. Our Carer Buddies are experienced foster carers who will mentor you through the assessment process and help you find your feet when you welcome your first child.
We also provide an extensive range of support for children in foster care, including our forum for young people. Our young people’s forums are safe spaces for foster children to share their thoughts and feelings about the support they receive and how it could be improved. We also ask young people in our care to participate in carer training and prepare questions for us to ask foster carers at the fostering panel.
At FCA Scotland, we work together, listen to our children, and continuously improve our services because this is the only way we can truly make a difference.
Enquire today!
If you’re ready to begin your next career move or want to transfer to a fostering agency that puts children and their foster families first, we’d love to hear from you.
Call us today on 0141 646 4805 or submit our online enquiry form, and our friendly team will be in touch!
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