A pioneering fostering model in Surrey has now helped improve the lives of 70 young people, giving them a stronger support network and extended family.

Surrey County Council introduced the Mockingbird Family Model, which in the UK is delivered by leading charity The Fostering Network, in October 2019. Children and young people in foster care in Surrey benefit hugely from Mockingbird, a pioneering and award-winning foster care model which sees a ‘constellation’ or ‘Hub’ of fostering households come together to form an ‘extended family’, providing support, fun, relationship to carers and children alike.

The model has gone from strength to strength and across the UK there are approaching 90 constellations and The Fostering Network is recommending the Mockingbird programme expands to all local authorities, so we hope this number will continue to grow.

Surrey has currently achieved three constellations, each led by a hub home foster carer who offers vital peer support and guidance, community and companionship, social get-togethers, play dates and sleepovers, to strengthen relationships and community.

Thanks to the support Mockingbird provides, 70 children have lived in families with a greater degree of stability, as a result of the lower number of breakdowns Mockingbird provides, meaning more of Surrey’s children can grow up with the security they deserve and with Surrey carers.

Clare Curran, Cabinet Member for Children and Families said: “It is fantastic to see the Mockingbird Family Model go from strength to strength, which speaks true to our ambition In Surrey that no one is left behind. We are determined to do everything we can to make life easier for those who need us and to keep our children rooted in the county. We want all children in Surrey to be able to reach their full potential and fostering provides safe, secure and loving homes for those who can’t live with their own families. I encourage anyone who feels that they could open their heart and home to children in the community, to find out more about fostering in Surrey.”

Not only is the Mockingbird model beneficial to children and their foster carers, who are supported in providing the best possible care to their young people; it is also a cost-effective, sustainable model of foster care, with greater success in caring for children than other existing fostering models.

Posted from Surrey News