Interview: Debbie Booth, foster carer, Auchterhouse, near Dundee - A model of fostering

"The longest we have had a foster child was five years, while some were with us for just a few weeks," she says. At present, Booth is caring for three children. "We have two brothers, who are six and eight, and we also have a 10-year-old."

Charity The Fostering Network is currently in the midst of its annual Foster Care Fortnight to recruit more foster carers, and Booth serves as a prime role model.

Booth believes she was always destined to become a foster carer: "We always knew we would do something involving the care of children," she explains. "I have a background in youth work, where I worked with disadvantaged young people."

Booth also has three children of her own, who each play a crucial role in caring for the foster children. "It's a family venture and our children act as surrogate brothers - it's also about them being role models. Our children play an important part as, for them, it's about being willing to share your mum and dad." She adds that foster children may also find it easier to confide in her sons.

Booth decided to become a foster carer after she went to an open evening held by Dundee City Council. "We spoke to staff and carers and then there was a period of training."

It was an extensive process, which lasted more than six months. But, at the end of the training, Booth says her family was "as prepared as we could have been" to start fostering.

However, when she started fostering, her expectations changed about the type of support she would be able to provide for children. "We were hoping to offer them an experience of normality and family life, but these children have their own families," she says.

As a result, there is often uncertainty about whether or not fostered children will accept their new family. "Some buy into it 100 per cent, but others find it more difficult," she says.

Realising that foster children are benefiting from the care they receive is one of the most rewarding parts of the job. For Booth, seeing the children "blossom and change in a positive way" is the part she finds most enjoyable in her role as a foster carer.

However, Booth says many children who are put up for fostering have emotional problems that some carers may find difficult to handle. "I have never come across a child that has not been damaged in some way, and emotional and behavioural difficulties can be displayed," she says.

But she adds that it is important for foster parents not to misinterpret the signals given out by fostered children. "They can be disturbed and it can seem like rejection but, if you recognise that all their behaviour has a meaning, it helps you to make sense of it."

With regard to other people becoming carers, Booth says any potential foster parents should refrain from automatically ruling themselves out of contention. "People should not make the assumption that it couldn't be for them," she explains. "Foster carers come from all walks of life and all levels of financial wealth."

So what qualities do foster carers need? For Booth, the answer is simple: "You need to like children and young people, you need to be a good listener and you need empathy."

She also believes there should be greater recognition of the important role a foster parent can play in a foster child's life.

"A lot of carers are not getting the level of financial support they need," she says. "Access to mental health services could also be improved because adolescent and child mental health services are poor."

BACKGROUND: FOSTER CARE - THE FACTS AND FIGURES

- There are 50,000 foster children living with 43,000 families on any given day in the UK, according to figures from The Fostering Network

- The network says 5,250 new foster carers need to be recruited this year to provide children with homes while they are unable to live with their own families (CYP Now, 14-20 May)

- Foster carers can either foster for local authorities (or health and social care trusts in Northern Ireland) or for independent fostering providers

- Foster Care Fortnight ends this Saturday (25 May)

- www.couldyoufoster.org.uk.