Employers are being urged to become ‘fostering friendly’ this Foster Care Fortnight as every day in Wales there are five children in need of foster care.

In Pembrokeshire, there are more than 240 children in the care of the local authority but only around 60 foster carers who are able to offer them the stable and loving homes that they deserve - whether that be for a few days, months or several years.

Foster Wales, the national network of 22 local authority fostering services in Wales, is calling on employers in Wales to become ‘fostering friendly’, in the hope of addressing the misconception that you cannot continue working if you become a foster carer.

This Foster Care Fortnight, which runs until May 28, The Fostering Network, the UK’s leading fostering charity, and local authority fostering services in Wales are asking the wider business community to lend their support and make it easier for their employees to combine fostering and working.

According to The Fostering Network, nearly 40 per cent of foster carers combine fostering with other work and their ‘fostering friendly’ policy encourages employers to provide flexibility and time off for employees who are prospective foster carers and are going through the application process.

The scheme also supports employees who are already foster carers, allowing time off for training, attendance at panels, to settle a new child into their home and to respond to any emergencies which may arise.

Having the support of an employer may make the vital difference in the decision of an employee to become a foster carer.

Cllr Tessa Hodgson, Pembrokeshire County Council’s Cabinet member for social care said: “Encouraging local employers to be fostering friendly is one of many things we are doing to support our foster carers in Pembrokeshire.

“We know that when children stay connected, stay local and have someone to stick by them for the long term, we see better outcomes.

“If employers in Pembrokeshire can support their employees to become foster carers, we can help more children stay local, connected to their communities, and ultimately, to achieve better futures.”

The Foster Wales Pembrokeshire team will be out and about round the county during Foster Care Fortnight, including at Fishguard Library this afternoon, Thursday May 18, between 1pm and 4pm.

Or call 01437 774650 or visit the Pembrokeshire Foster Wales website.