Over 300 years of caring for Hartlepool children and giving them the best start in life have been celebrated in a very special event.
That’s the remarkable combined total of service by Hartlepool Borough Council foster carers who have been presented with long service awards by the Council.
The roll of honour was:
Carole Archibald - 21 years
Marion Douglas - 27 years
Irene and Norman Foreman - 24 years
Linda and John Handley - 25 years
Janice and Geoffrey Hutchinson - 20 years
Sarah Longmoor - 22 years
Matanat Lowther -21 years
Mandy Nicholson - 23 years
Gillian and Gary Sullivan - 22 years
Karen and James Tate - 35 years
Barbara and Michael Trueman - 25 years
Joanne Vayro - 23 years
Ann and Derek Wilson - 27 years
To mark their achievement, the foster carers were presented with certificates of long service and bouquets of flowers in a ceremony in the Council Chamber in Civic Centre.
The foster carers with (left) Councillor Moss Boddy and (right) Alison Sutherland, the Council’s Executive Director of Children’s Services
Councillor Moss Boddy, Vice-Chair of the Council’s Children’s Services Committee, said: “I can’t praise enough the fantastic work done by all our foster carers – they are the pride of Hartlepool.
“They do a phenomenal job and we couldn’t be more grateful - without them we wouldn’t be able to give the children in our care a good start in life in a loving, supportive family environment.
“I hope the marvellous example set by these foster carers will encourage other people in Hartlepool to become foster carers, sharing their heart and their home to help shape a child’s future.”
The Council urgently needs more foster carers from all backgrounds and walks of life to offer long or short-term foster care, or to spare a weekend or time over the school holidays or to do it on an emergency basis.
There are lots of great reasons to foster with the Council, including thorough training, competitive payments and ongoing support and encouragement from the Council’s Children’s Services Department – rated ‘Outstanding’ by Government inspectors – and fellow foster carers.
So if you live in Hartlepool, are aged over 21, why not find out more about fostering with Hartlepool Borough Council at www.fosterwithnortheast.org.uk or call 0800 917 7771.