New foster care programme launched in Cornwall

A new fostering programme has been launched to cover part of Cornwall.

The foster care model, called Mockingbird, is led by The Fostering Network and is part of a government plan to keep hold of existing foster carers and find new ones.

It was launched at the Eden project on Saturday and aims to deliver sustainable foster care in the St Austell area.

Mockingbird coach Bethan Drew said the programme was "absolutely desperate for more foster carers".

She said: "They say that a child comes into care every 15 minutes and in the last few years the number of foster carers has gone down while the number of children going into care has gone up.

"We are absolutely desperate for more foster carers and if you are considering it we would encourage you to contact Fostering South West.

"There are no expectations, they're welcome just to talk things through with you."

Cornwall Council said the Mockingbird programme was based on the concept of "it takes a village to raise a child".

The model sees foster families link together into communities called "constellations" with a "central hub home" at the core of six to 10 satellite foster homes.

Hub home carer Brian Smith said the process was designed to mimic an extended family.

He said: "An extended family is something children in care don't experience normally.

"Being a foster carer and being a child in care is quite isolating and mockingbird is a way to overcome some of that."

Cornwall Council added it hoped to launch a second constellation in the spring.

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