a big welcome for every foster child in Wales

Every foster child who goes into the home of a new foster family deserves a warm, personal welcome. This is where the Big Welcome fostering portal comes in – it gives children and foster carers the chance to start their journey together in the most positive way possible.

what is big welcome

The Big Welcome was created as a way for foster families to virtually introduce themselves to a new child before they join the household. Through an interactive foster profile, they can share information – and photos – of family members, pets, the home itself, and even the local area.

With the help of the Big Welcome foster care portal, children and young people can look through the profile of a foster carer before they meet them. The simple but powerful tool flips uncertainty on its head, turning it into excitement.

The Big Welcome is part of our commitment to make fostering with a local authority as supportive, personal, and child-centred as possible.

why the big welcome fostering tool makes a difference

Whether it’s their first time with a foster family, or the next move on their journey, arriving at a new foster home feels like a big step for care-experienced children and young people.

The Big Welcome fostering portal was designed to ease the transition by presenting them with an interactive foster carer profile before they arrive.

Alastair Cope, Head of Foster Wales, said: “As the national network for not-for-profit local authority fostering services, Foster Wales is committed to building better futures for children and young people needing care.

“Our children told us that they wanted more information on where they were going to live. They wanted to know what their bedroom would look like, who the family pet was and what the foster carers like to do in their spare time.

“We’ve already heard from our social workers about what a huge difference this is making. The Big Welcome is providing the reassurance and connection needed to get a relationship off to the best possible start.”

big welcome: foster care, with children at its heart

Developed in partnership between charity Action for Children and social innovation agency Super Being Labs, the Big Welcome was designed through a series of workshops and 1:1 interviews with 120 care-experienced young people and more than 75 foster carers.

When conducting the research behind the Big Welcome fostering platform, the team asked care-experienced children how a foster carer could make a child feel welcome and what made a young person feel anxious.

The designers of the interactive foster profiles addressed the needs identified by ensuring a child could see what their bedroom would look like. This way, they’ve made sure that the Big Welcome foster care tool gives children what they wanted to see.

“this is exactly what we’ve been asking for. I wish I’d had this growing up in care” – Voices From Care Cymru

The Foster Wales Big Welcome collaboration was inspired by that desire to make something specifically for the children, in a way that honours their journey and gives them a stronger sense of belonging from the very start of the process.

stories from foster families

Amy Davies first went into foster care aged 11 before living with her nan from the age of 16. Amy then began her own journey as a foster carer by caring for her young sister as a kinship carer at just 21 years old. She’s now been fostering for 23 years, mainly caring for older children with her husband Gavin.

Amy said the Big Welcome will help children feel more at ease before meeting a carer and any new foster siblings.

“when I was younger and going into foster care, I think if I was able to have a look at who I was about to meet it would have made me feel less anxious. I was usually quite anxious about who they were or what they were like, but seeing a profile helps to take away a bit of that fear of the unknown.”

Their story is one of many showing how the Big Welcome fostering platform helps foster children gain confidence and familiarity with their new carers and surroundings, building trust and positive relationships from day one.

how to get involved with foster wales’ big welcome initiative

Thanks to the Big Welcome foster care portal, children entering foster care can get to know the home they are going to before they arrive. It helps settle any nerves and makes their fostering journey a little easier.

Become a part of the Big Welcome fostering initiative – find your local authority and take the first step today.