5 books every foster carer needs to read this world book day
Foster Wales Caerphilly staff and current foster carers have recommended 5 books every foster carer needs to read this world book day. Some are stories from children in care or foster carers. Others are advice and guidance on how to support children who are looked after. Either way, they provide a great insight into fostering.
Terrified: The Heart-breaking True Story of a Girl Nobody Loved and the Woman Who Saved Her by Angela Hart
Angela Hart has been a foster carer in the UK for over two decades, fostering more than fifty children. After training as a specialist carer for teenagers with complex needs. Hart’s series of books chronicle her experience as a foster parent. ‘Terrified’ tells the story of a little girl who came to Angela after years of emotional abuse. We learn how Angela’s struggle to help her find freedom from her past.
Thrown Away Child by Louise Allen
This memoir from a looked after child turned foster carer explores the dark and light of foster care. A victim of an abusive foster home, Louise Allen determines to become a foster carer herself. Beginning a campaigning for better foster care services. The book’s success inspired Allen to continue writing about foster care under her Thrown Away Children series.
Nobody’s Child by Kate Adie
Inspired by her experience as an adopted child, journalist and BBC presenter Kate Adie shares the stories of adults who grew up as ‘abandoned’ children. The result is a moving collection of perspectives on what it means to be a child, and what it means to belong.
Why Can’t My Child Behave? Empathic Parenting Strategies that Work for Adoptive and Foster Families by Dr Amber Elliott
This book provides practical advice on caring for children with developmental trauma. It’s written as an easy-to-use reference guide for adoptive and foster families, and focuses on common behavioural challenges. Behaviour is a key form of communication for children with attachment issues, this book is a valuable asset for any foster carer.
A Guide to Attachment, how to Create a Positive Future, and Looking After Looked After Children, by Sir John Timpson CBE
Sir Timpson and his wife were foster carers and advocates of foster care for many years. His three books are aimed at providing support and information for foster families. They are available for free from any Timpson, Max Spielmann or Johnsons the Cleaners store.
