A Spotlight on Respite Fostering

Comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is currently touring the country with her 100-day tour in which she shares her experience of the joys and challenges as a respite foster carer.

Kiri explained: “I’d always imagined children in my future, but as time went on, from my late teens onwards, I wasn’t sure I wanted biological children,” she said. She initially thought about adopting but with a career in comedy involving travelling to shows nationwide, she decided this wasn’t the right route for her. Respite foster care seemed an ideal solution.

“It weirdly provided a level of flexibility but also all the stuff about being a parental figure that I’m so excited about, having young people’s back and championing them, helping them be their best person. You get to do all that as a foster parent.”

She hopes that her show will encourage more people who’ve considered fostering to take the next step and find out more.

“It’s all about planting seeds, having the conversations,” she added. “I’m doing 100 dates. If I manage to make one person from each become a foster carer that would be a huge thing.”

Respite Foster Care

Kiri and her partner foster young people for a couple of hours through to a couple of weeks, providing vital support to give young people and their carers the chance to have a break or provide childcare cover for events and emergencies.

James Townend, Managing Director and Social Worker, Fitzgerald Fostering said, “There is currently a huge focus on raising awareness of the urgent need for more foster carers – and Kiri’s show is a fantastic way of putting the spotlight on foster care, particularly respite care.

“Many people don’t realise there are a range of fostering options including emergency foster care, respite foster care and short-term foster care. These options may suit them if they do not want to or cannot commit to long-term fostering but are still interested in helping a young person who is unable to stay with their birth family. At Fitzgerald Fostering, we support all of our foster carers 24/7, helping them to provide the best possible outcomes for the young people they are looking after.”

If you live in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire or the surrounding areas and would like to find out more about fostering through Fitzgerald Fostering, please contact us on 01753 550031 or sign up here to attend one of our online information events. For more information about the different types of foster carer opportunities available, please click here.

Kiri will be performing in Reading on 9 November 2024. Click here for more information.