My fostering journey

Hi, my name is Suniya Qureshi, and my mid-life crisis was to become a foster carer in my 40s!

I’m a single mum of a teenage girl. My daughter was the instigator of my fostering journey. I passed my panel in the Spring of 2018 and haven't looked back since!

I had assumed I would look after under 12s and possibly babies, but it worked out that my placement ended up with teenagers mostly, close to my daughters age and this worked out great! I had the assumption that dealing with teenagers would be too challenging, but I found my groove was with over 12s.

The challenges they faced were manageable and they were of an age I could better negotiate terms, and was less physically challenging than meeting needs of toddlers and under 10's. What has been amazing is not only seeing the growth and trajectory of my foster kids, but also the learning I have achieved in the past 4 years - both personal and professional growth as a foster carer.

The cliché that the role of a foster carer is highly rewarding, does not in fact reflect how much the children teach you about yourself. You certainly have to have gumption and a heart to navigate through the tough moments and equally rejoice the successes.

The training on offer is excellent and can enable you to chart a pathway of care provision which direction you take on the fostering journey. I encourage everyone to give some thought and do some research into fostering as a career.

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