Blogs
Dr Karen Treisman is a clinical psychologist who has worked in the NHS and children’s services for several years. She has extensive experience in the areas of trauma, parenting, and attachment, and works clinically using a range of therapeutic approaches with families, systems, and children in or on the edge of care, unaccompanied asylum-seeking young people, and adopted children.
Karen is a regular contributor to The Fostering Network’s conference. Karen has a new book out - A Therapeutic Treasure Box for Working with Children and Adolescents with Developmental Trauma: Creative Techniques and Activities – and here she outlines why she has written the book and how she hopes it will help.
This blog, by our chief executive Kevin Williams, first appeared on Huffington Post on 25 August 2017.
Kathleen Toner, director of The Fostering Network in Northern Ireland, outlines our role in shaping the proposed new children’s legislation in Northern Ireland and the merits of updating the law
Our recent Health Matters project in Scotland has been exploring issues relating to foster carers’ health
Our regular blogger Lucy Stevens wrote this poem after being inspired by one of her fostering service's foster carers who she says is doing amazing work
Respite can be extremely positive for children and carers alike but the change in routine and environment can also be disruptive. In this blog Cathy Glass describes her experience of providing respite care, what she's learned and how much of an impact respite carers can make on the lives of children and young people.
A key part of of The Fostering Network's role is to raise the profile of fostering and further the understanding of fostering among the wider society. Whenever we hear, therefore, of a TV programme introducing a fostering storyline we wait with baited breath to see how accurately fostering is represented. TV, and especially drama, offers an opportunity to bring fostering into millions of homes – but it also brings the possibility of undermining the amazing work that tens of thousands of foster families do every day.
We were therefore delighted when Doctors first approached us – over a year ago – to seek some advice for a fostering story they were working on. The researcher asked very detailed questions which gave us hope that there was every chance of the reality of fostering being well represented, albeit within the constraints of a daily TV drama.
