'One heck of a rollercoaster' - foster carers urged to come forward

For almost 24 years, Beverly Craig and her husband have had 14 "wee ones" – or foster children – through their doors.

And despite the "emotional rollercoaster" of nurturing a child destined to leave sooner rather than later, she would not change a thing.

"There isn't one that has come through our door that my husband and I weren't able to love very much and take them like our own," she said. "It's just been a joy."

But with record numbers of children in care, more foster carers – like Beverly - are needed.

It is not a new problem. In recent years, Northern Ireland has not had enough carers to cope with demand.

But it appears it is becoming more acute, with the Fostering Network, a charity that supports foster carers and children, saying the number of children in need of care has been going up at a time when the number of carers is going down.

"We are not really keeping up with the level of recruitment that we need to see to ensure that every child who becomes looked after has the right opportunity to be placed with a fostering family," the charity's chief executive Sarah Thomas said.

For Beverly being a foster carer with children's charity Barnardo's is challenging but rewarding.

"Well, I suppose you are giving up your whole life, it's 24/7 so you do need to think about it very carefully," she said.

"But when you do it, it is amazing you'll not regret it."

If foster carers have room in their homes and "the capacity to love other people's children like your own" the rest "comes naturally", according to Beverly.

"The children come through your door and it is amazing - you are on one heck of a rollercoaster."

Colin Jamieson is also a foster carer with Barnardo's and said it was hard to pinpoint why more people do not come forward.

"I suppose sometimes there is a bit of bad press around," he said. "But we've got to remember we are talking about young, vulnerable children who just need someone there to support them."

He said there were a lot of people "quite capable of doing that".

"Those are the people we need to come forward, just to support these children and to give them what they need and that real start," he added.

Hilary Armstrong, operations manager at the charity, has suggested a number of reasons why people are not coming forward to foster.

"The cost of living is always a big factor for families and we know things have got very expensive," she said.

Armstrong explained there were financial supports available.

Another obstacle to fostering is societal change in families, she said.

"So it's things like young adult children that are remaining at home for longer," she said.

"Or perhaps they are going off for a period of time after school, but they are coming back home again to save for deposits for maybe having their own house in the future," she said.

"I think 10 or 15 years ago there was less of that around."

Health Minister Robbie Butler has first-hand experience of providing foster care and said he would like to encourage people to come forward to foster.

"My wife and I provided foster care for maybe around 17 years," he said.

"We had two kids of our own, both of us were working full time while we fostered children.

"I get a little bit embarrassed sometimes by people saying 'oh you were really good', but what we provided was short term respite and emergency."

Butler said his family were able to provide "a safe, loving, stable environment for children, for a short period of time".

"As health minister what I want to do is drive that awareness to help foster families," he added.

As of the end of March, 4,287 children and young people were in care in Northern Ireland, according to the Department of Health (DoH).

This was the highest number recorded since the introduction of the Children (Northern Ireland) Order 1995.

The DoH said even though there had been an increase in health trust-recruited foster carers, there were still significant pressures in providing a placement for every child who needs one.

In England, the number of children in care increased by 17% from 2015 to 2025, while in Wales the increase across the same period was 26%, according to official statistics.

In Scotland there has been a decrease of 23% in the same time period.

The DoH said within the wider children's social care services reform programme, a draft strategy for fostering recruitment and retention had been developed.

Work is under way to start to implement the plan, although this is challenging within the current financial situation - with the department previously stating it is facing a projected deficit of between £800m-£1bn this financial year.

The department added it was committed to ensuring fostering was an attractive and valued option, with recent developments including uplifts in care allowance and the progression of a new regulatory framework.

If you are interested in becoming a foster carer, contact your local fostering service.

This can either be the social services department in your local health trust, Health and Social Care (HSC) NI Adoption and Foster Care, or an independent fostering agency.

They will explain what is involved and will help you decide whether fostering is right for you and your family.

Further information and advice is also available on the BBC Bitesize website.