To commemorate International Women’s Day, the charity Diagrama is highlighting some of the many incredible achievements by women who have chosen to foster and change the life of children and young adults.
Kristin Nevins share’s her home with her husband Peter, their four biological children and their 11-year-old foster child ‘Jack’. “Our foster son ‘Jack’ joined us four years ago. We had no preconceived ideas about what age or sex any foster child placed with us might be, we just wanted to offer a home to one of the thousands of children in the UK who need a safe and living home. We discussed it as a family so that everyone was fully on board and comfortable with our decision to foster. When Diagrama suggested ‘Jack’ we looked closely at what this would mean for our family, and it just seemed right. ’Jack’ is autistic and has global development delay, so although 11, he has the processing time of a 3–4-year-old, needs simple, clear, consistent instructions, doesn’t have a sense of danger and is non-verbal.”
Beth Earnshaw is 26, works full time and lives at home with her parents. “Becoming a foster carer has been a very long held dream, but my situation is very different from other Foster Carers and I was thrilled when Diagrama explained that they wanted to support people from all different walks of life, and I could enter their programme to train as a carer. Fostering is both challenging and rewarding but the boy currently in my care, makes it so enjoyable as he is so funny. I love being around children, not only at work as a teaching assistant, but at home too and seeing him feeling safe and secure is the most wonderful gift any foster carer could ask for.”
Nic and Chris Kimmance have been married for sixteen years they have two daughters, Lucy and Maddy and as a family decided to become foster carers with the charity Diagrama. “Our decision to become foster parents was years in the making. When we got married, we knew we wanted a family, but it was not happening for us, so we looked at fostering and adoption. Then I fell pregnant not once but twice and we had two beautiful girls. The idea of fostering went on to the back burner for many years, until I raised the idea with Chris again. Once we had agreed to explore fostering, we started to talk with our daughters about what it might mean for our family and how they felt about the possibility of sharing their home with other children. The girls were very positive about the idea so together we moved forward. We were accepted on to the Diagrama fostering programme and after comprehensive training and endless support, our first foster child was placed with us.”
Kate Patel, Head of Fostering and Adoption at Diagrama said, “On International Women’s Day we wanted to give a huge shout out to every one of the thousands of women who have found it in their hearts to become a foster carer and give a child a home and the safety and security they need.”
If you would like to find out more about becoming a foster carer visit www.diagramafostering.org.uk
About International Women’s Day
International Women’s Day (March 8) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women.
www.internationalwomensday.com
About Diagrama Fostering
Diagrama Fostering is an independent, not-for-profit fostering agency. Diagrama foster carers provide a supportive environment for “looked after” children across south London, Surrey, East and West Sussex, Berkshire, Kent, and Hampshire.
The Diagrama agency is small enough to offer a personalised fostering experience while benefitting from the expertise and security that comes with being part of the larger Diagrama charitable foundation. www.diagramafoundation.org.uk
Diagrama works with many local authorities and gives their carers access to a wide and varied range of children in need of care.
