The campaign has caught the nation's attention. Children Now spoke toQuick after an interview with Radio Five Live. He's already been on theBBC and in most tabloid newspapers. "It's been exciting and different,"says Quick about all the fuss.
What's making the headlines is his appearance. He's 23 stone, has 15tattoos, shaved head and a metal spike through his chin. He's also aformer florist. Quick objects to being stereotyped. "Some people seem tohave some narrow and out-dated ideas about who can become foster carersthese days. Perceptions can be deceptive. So what if I'm a biker? I lookthe way I do. It's the ability to understand and respond to the needs ofkids that really counts when it comes to being a good foster carer."
Quick and his wife Tracey (pictured above) started fostering for a localauthority four years ago. "We were having fertility treatment at thetime and decided that if it didn't work we'd foster. It did work, but wedecided to foster anyway."
After a brief break from fostering to do up their house, the Quicksdecided they wanted to foster children with special needs. NCH Wales'Taith Newydd Fostering Project approved them as carers last June.
"We looked at all the different agencies in our area and decided thatNCH suited us best. We liked their attitude. They were up to the minute,had a more modern attitude, were relaxed, very politically correct andvery professional about everything," says Quick.
Children love the Quicks. "We're relaxed. In our day-to-day life we'revery relaxed people. If I was any more relaxed I'd forget how tobreathe," he says. "It helps because you don't get stressed so much. Ifyou've got problems, you just work round them."
Quick's a keen pet owner with four Yorkshire terriers and Herbie, agreen-cheeked parrot, which he describes as his "dancing alarm clock".The pets help break the ice when new foster children arrive. "The firstthing you do is say, 'come and see the dogs'," says Quick.
Opening his home to strangers has been the hardest part about fosteringfor Quick. "To open up your life, your background, your past, it's alittle bit unnerving at first."
But he's won over by the rewards. "We've got a three-year-old child withus at the moment. He's autistic. When he came to us he was so difficultto work with, but we've turned him around. He's come on in leaps andbounds. He wouldn't give you eye contact to start with, but now he givesyou smiles and hugs."
Quick and his wife have two sons of their own, 11-year-old Ieuan andthree-year-old Dafydd. They've reacted differently to sharing their homewith foster children. "The oldest one is absolutely fantastic, he reallyenjoys it. Every time the social worker comes he looks to see if anotherchild's coming. The younger one is coming round to the idea.
He didn't like it when we had older children. But we've now got a childabout the same age as him. We did have a little bit of jealousy at onepoint. Then we had to really make sure we spent quality time withDafydd," he says.
Quick's voice lifts when asked about motorcycling. "I'm chairman of theLlantrisant-based Bikers, Trikes and Scooters Club," he says. The club's40 members are planning a fundraising event for NCH in the summer. "Youdon't have to persuade any of them. It's strange. People have thispreconception of motorcyclists as only interested in themselves. If youlook around the country so many motorcyclist clubs do so much forcharity. And they do it off their own back. It's fantastic."
BACKGROUND - Foster Care Fortnight
- Foster Care Fortnight takes place from 8-21 May. Projects around thecountry are planning innovative ways to recruit new foster carers tomark the fortnight
- This year's theme is "fostering brighter futures" and campaigners hopeto highlight what children, young people and foster carers achieve. Thefortnight is organised by the Fostering Network, which says there is ashortage of 10,000 foster carers across the UK
- There are 70,000 children in public care on any one day in the UK. Ofthese 50,000 are looked-after by 37,000 foster families
- www.fostering.net.
