Introducing the London fostering team

Are you interested in fostering? Want to find out more about the team who could be supporting you?

Gabriella Kulesza, London Fostering Team Manager, and Lucy Carroll, Supervising Social Worker, work with our carers across London. They provide support, organise training sessions and undertake assessments to ensure that all of our carers and children are happy and safe. Here they tell us about their roles and what they think makes a good foster carer.

Lucy, top left, and Gabriella, bottom right, look after our foster carers in London

What does your job involve?
Gabriella: I’m the Team Manager for fostering in London. I support all of our London carers, whether they are currently looking after a child or not. I make sure they provide a safe, loving environment where a child can feel at home. I also help to recruit new carers by attending events like community fairs, where I talk to people about what’s involved in fostering.

Lucy: As a Supervising Social Worker I visualise an entire care plan for a child and make informed recommendations on issues that affect their life. I’m available at all hours of the day so that carers can ask for my help or guidance, and help with training sessions for new and existing carers. I’m also welcoming a Social Work student to our team soon, so I will be helping them gain the experience they need to qualify.

In your opinion what’s the most important thing about your role?
Gabriella: The best way we can get things right for the child are by getting things right for the carer as soon as they enquire about fostering with us. My aim is to get the best possible outcomes for all children so that they can go on to have a bright, fulfilling future. It’s challenging, but the rewards are so great that it’s always worthwhile.

Lucy: My priority is minimising disruptions for a child by finding carers they can live with for long-term placements. If for some reason a disruption can’t be avoided, then I try to make the transition as smooth as possible to keep some stability in the child’s life. I also enjoy organising the annual awards events, where we celebrate all the children that our carers look after. It’s great to see how much they achieve in one short year!

What do you think makes a good foster carer?
Gabriella: A carer should be open, warm and caring, with the time and patience to look after a child. It is going to be a challenge so you need to have some self-belief and confidence that will allow you to care for the child and promote the best outcomes for them. You should be able to relate to children, even if you don't have your own.

Lucy: The best carers go the extra mile to ensure the child feels like part of the family and is treated like a birth child, which is really important. Things like cooking a child’s favourite meal and taking them for days out can make such a huge difference to their development.

Gabriella: We work in partnership with our carers to get the best results and ensure that the child comes first. Even if you think you might not meet every single requirement to foster, we can help you become an amazing carer with our excellent training and support.

Lucy: We get the best outcomes when we have a good match between a child and their carer. For example, we look after one young person who said it was important for a carer to understand her sarcastic sense of humour. We worked hard to find the right carer for her, and the two of them have developed a really strong bond.

Do any particular carers stand out in your mind for being great?
Gabriella: There is a couple we work with who have looked after a boy with severe learning and physical disabilities since he was a baby. He is now 12 years old and their commitment to him is amazing – they are even planning to adopt him! They have been amazing carers and have advocated for his needs every step of the way.

Lucy: A carer that stands out for me is a single woman who has looked after a young person for about five years. She is now 16 years old and goes to all family events, like a birthday party for the carer’s granddaughter. They’ve developed such a strong relationship because the carer will go above and beyond to make the young person feel included and valued.

Gabriella: Another one of our single carers recently completed a Masters in Autism. She looks after a child with this condition and uses the knowledge she gained from her degree to enhance the care she provides. Her success is down to her great communication skills and her warm and compassionate nature. She really goes the extra mile and you can hear the passion in her voice when she talks about fostering and the young person she cares for.

Why do you think it’s important to recruit new carers?
Gabriella: The more carers we have, the more young people we can help. To look after someone else’s child in your own home is one of the most amazing things you can do. Our carers are so selfless and tenacious, and always do their very best for the young person. It’s an enriching experience not only for the child, but for the carer as well.

If you think you could be a great foster carer, we want to hear from you. We’re recruiting carers across the London boroughs, but particularly in Ealing, Hillingdon and Hounslow. Get in touch with our friendly enquiries team today via email or on 0800 234 6282.

Find out more about fostering on our website.

Five ways to boost your child’s self-esteem

Sandie Paul, Fostering Manager, supports our carers and children in the West Midlands. Here she offers advice for parents and carers who want to help their young people build their self-esteem.

As adults most of us know that it’s completely natural to have times when you don’t feel as good about yourself as you should. We can usually find ways to combat these emotions, but what can you do when it’s your child having a tough time?

If you’re a parent or foster carer looking after a young person with low self-esteem, try these tips to help boost their confidence. Remember – we all have individual needs and the only way to find things that will work is through directly talking to the young person about what would make them feel good.

Image by Kiran Foster

1. Start a feel-good box
Keep a box full of objects and notes that remind your child of times when they felt good about themselves. This can be photographs of fun days out, notes or stickers from teachers praising their work, or keepsakes like tickets and small toys. Reminiscing about happier times will remind your child of these positive experiences and will boost their self-esteem.

2. Keep track of compliments
Encourage your child to keep a note of any compliments they receive in a book. When they’re feeling down or anxious, they can flick through this and be reminded of all the positive things about themselves that friends, relatives and teachers have said in the past.

3. Exercise away the stress
Exercising is scientifically proven to increase happiness levels no matter how old you are. On days that your child is feeling down, take them to a local park for some fresh air and some blood-pumping activity, where they can run around and have fun. This has the added benefit of helping them to stay fit and in control of their health.

4. Do something they’re good at
If your child has a particular talent, like playing an instrument or taking part in sport, persuade them to do this when they’re struggling with low self-esteem. It works as a reminder of what they’re good at and how their skills contribute to make other people proud or happy. Even if it’s playing their favourite board game and letting them win, it can make a difference.

5. Let them set and achieve a task
Focusing on something that needs to be completed will take your child’s mind of whatever problem is affecting their confidence. This works as a self-esteem boost by empowering them to make a decision and following through. The sense of achievement will boost their self-worth and give them faith in their abilities.

Growing up is a turbulent time for everyone, but if your lacking stability or facing problems at home then it can be especially tricky. Children and young people in care often struggle with lower levels of self-confidence than their peers. That’s why we’re looking for individuals who could be great foster carers – are you up for the job?

Get in touch with us today!

Becoming a Foster Carer: Home Visits

Hi, I'm Sandie and I'm the fostering manager here at St Christopher's in the West Midlands. My top team of social workers complete our home visits. These take place after you enquire about fostering and we think you might be suitable to start fostering our young people. We're all local people who work in the area and we believe our team is special because we really want to make a difference for children and it's important that our foster carers want to do the same.

Children shared what they
thought a foster carer looked like

We'll call you and introduce ourselves. We think it's good that you know who'll be coming to visit you! Our visit will always be at a time when you (and your partner, if you have one) are both at home. Yes, we can visit at weekends and evenings! If you think it's appropritate for your own children to be there as well, that's okay too. We think they're an important part of any foster family.

We always ask that you keep your house how you'd have it on any other day. This is because the home visit is chance to get a peak into your everyday lives.

Although we do have questions to ask and paperwork to fill in, this is a really great chance for you to ask us lots of questions too.

We like to start by having a look around your house, especially as we'd like to see the bedroom you'd intend for a foster child. We need to make sure it can fit all the right furniture in and that it's a good space for a child to call their own. Of course, we don't expect it to be all ready for someone to move in. You'll have plenty of time to sort that out if you carry on with the process of becoming a foster carer.

Alongside the bedroom, we'll generally check that your home is a safe, clean space for someone else to come and live there with you and your family.

After we've had a look around, we can then chat with you and your family. Our questions cover lots of topics, including what fun things you like to do as a family, your life experiences, your family's health and your understanding of fostering and fostered children. We always like to discuss your answers and we always want you to ask questions as well. We want you to feel confident and comfortable with us as we'll be supporting you throughout your fostering journey.

Your social worker will check through all the paperwork after the visit and make sure it has as much detail as possible so we get the best picture of your family. I'll then decide whether to invite you to our preparation training. We'll always be transparent with you and we might sometimes ask for more information and we'll always explain if we can't progress you to the next stage. Honesty is always the best way forward and it's always great to talk to potential foster carers. Remember, your life experience is good. It makes you who you are today!

Foster Care Fortnight: Fostering and the Arts

Did you know that it's Foster Care Fortnight (June 1 - June 14)? For the next two weeks, we'll be taking a look at what fostering is and how St Christopher's supports young people and foster carers. 

Today we're focusing on fostering and the arts. Here's Joanna Treharne, supervising social worker, from our West Midlands fostering team, talking about the drama group she runs for local fostered children.

The Sparkling Stars drama group started in September 2014 as an opportunity for fostered young people and birth children to come together and explore expressing themselves through the medium of drama and performing arts. It's evolved into a regular monthly group. The initial target group was 11 to 16 years old but the young people who are committed are aged six to 14 years old. The group is made up of children who have experienced early trauma, attachment difficulties and some who have additional needs.

Jo does fantastic work with her
drama group for fostered children

Due to the young people's age and experience a lot of focus has been on group and social skills, voice projection, confidence raising, calming techniques and understanding how emotions affect physicality. The children have also picked up a range of drama skills, such as script writing, storyboards, costume design, developing characters and learning skills. This has been achieved through icebreakers, team building activities, drama games, singing, tongue twisters, dressing up, using musical instruments and learning meaningful poems.

The young people chose to perform their poems at our celebration event in November 2014 in front of 120 people. They said that they felt they had achieved something they were not sure they could have done before!

The young people wanted to continue developing their drama and speech and language skills on a regular basis and undertake new projects. The group provides peer support and a safe place for young people to be themselves and share their experiences of being looked after. We're also developing social interaction skills and helping young people to develop an understanding of participation and having a voice about the services they receive.

The group focuses on a particular area of our group agreement each session, such as showing respect and taking part and have a discussion about this. They can also share issues that they are worried, happy, angry about or proud of. Each session is evaluated by the group using scales and visual tools. Young people are always encouraged to share positive feedback about their peers.

Future plans are to prepare, practice and perform a young people's play chosen by the group to an audience in October 2015. They're also preparing poems to interpret and perform at our next Celebration of Achievement event in November 2015.

Meet Our Team: Kerryann, Recruitment Officer

Hi, I'm Kerryann and I've been the Carer Recruitment Officer here at St Christopher's for two years. I've spoken to more than 3,000 people like you who are interested in fostering.


You might be worried that fostering isn't for you but we're always looking for people from all sorts of different backgrounds to start supporting our young people. Your age, sexuality, relationship status or faith aren't barriers to becoming a foster carer. We're just looking for patient, dedicated people who want to change children's lives. I really want everyone to know that many different people can provide a family that will match many of the children in the care system.

If you want to have a chat with me about fostering, why not get in touch? You can enquire about fostering in a number of ways, including by email, telephone, Facebook or face-to-face. It all depends on what's more convenient for you.

Meet Kerryann

I make sure every single enquiry is followed up and I'll be able to answer any questions you have. I'll even ask you some questions but they're just so I can check you meet the minimum requirements, such as having a spare bedroom where young people can stay. Your information will be completely confidential and I won't judge your answers. Any questions are just so we can get the best possible carers for our young people. I'll also send you a booklet about fostering so you can take a look at home with your family and friends.

I think it's really important that you know about the support that's offered by St Christopher's throughout the fostering process. So many people would love to start fostering but we know you might have worries or concerns about things like financial and practical support. I and the rest of the fostering team will be with you every step of the way to make sure you're supported throughout your fostering journey. We pride ourselves on the training and support we offer so you'll be in good hands.


If you can and want to continue, I'll send your details to your local fostering team and a social worker will arrange to visit you. This also means that your social worker is never far away if you need help or support. Your social worker will have an Information Meeting with you and they'll go through up-to-date information about children who need foster carers. Again, this is all to help you decide if fostering is the best option for you and your family and you can ask all the questions you want. That's what we're here for!

I want you to know that all these stages of the fostering process are informal and it's a great way for you to get to know more about St Christopher's. You'll also get to meet our team who you'll work with closely if you're approved to foster.

If you want to change young people's lives, why not start your fostering journey today. Find out more and enquire about fostering by clicking here.