Care should be a good foundation for life

They are among society's most vulnerable children and have, by definition, experienced difficult starts in life. Research shows that children who grow up in care are three times more likely to be unemployed after leaving school, and 50 per cent of under-18s in prison have previously been in care. There is clearly a need to address the disruption living in care has on young people and to ensure a broad range of services are in place to help them to become confident and successful adults.

The Fostering Network has a membership of more than 50,000 foster carers, most local authorities, as well as health and social services trusts in the UK. It runs specialist projects nationwide with the aim of improving the lives of children in care. Its new project, Leading Our Lives, brings together foster children, care leavers and sons and daughters of foster carers to give them a voice in their futures. The three-year project will establish participation groups for young people in England, promote participation though support organisations, recruit sessional workers and deliver practical information resources. It will create regional forums of young people who will be given the opportunity to input into the services that affect them and also benefit from vocational support such as campaigning and media training to help build their confidence in speaking to the media about their work.