I'm Ed, the creator of OSM, and in 2022 I took a big life decision to become a foster carer. There's a desperate need for more carers, so who better to ask than scout leaders/parents/carers.
Before I applied, I thought I needed to be a perfect person with a perfect childhood in a perfect relationship - I was wrong. If you're over 21 and have a spare bedroom, you can foster. You can be single, in a relationship, young, old, working, retired, have children, don't have children, etc.
Fostering is a hugely rewarding role. It can be frustrating dealing with procedures, but it's so worthwhile and I wouldn't trade it for the world. The frustrations are insignificant compared to what the children have gone through, and the rewards you'll get by helping them.
Unlike scouting, you are paid, but it's not a quick or easy way to make money! You can foster for occasional weekends all the way up to looking after a child til they're 18 and beyond.
There are 100,000 children in the UK in foster care and, just like scouting, there's always a shortage of adults.
Search for your local fostering teams and have a chat if you think you could help in any way.
Thank you for reading this far - I hope it's given you some food for thought.
