Foster Portsmouth, alongside our Fostering South East cluster partners Southampton City Council and Hampshire County Council, braved the thunder storms and showers to take ‘Pride’ of place at UK Pride on 7 June. Of the 260+ community-run Pride organisations across the UK, Portsmouth Pride won the bid to host UK Pride in 2025.
Taking part in the event is part of a campaign throughout June by Foster Portsmouth. Our team was also part of UK Pride and The Family Network’s LGBTQ+ Routes to Parenting event on 3 June, and we will celebrating our foster carers from the LGBTQ+ community and taking action to bust myths around who can foster throughout Pride Month.
Foster Portsmouth, Fostering Southampton and Hampshire County Council’s fostering service all joined forces at UK Pride armed with rainbow fluffy bug giveaways and fitted out with Pride goodies to meet event goers. They aimed to raise awareness of the national crisis in foster care and the need for more foster carers in the area, whilst dispelling any remaining myths that may prevent some from the LGBTQ+ community from exploring fostering to build a family life.
Anyone aged over 21 with a spare bedroom could foster, regardless of their age, gender, sexuality, faith, ethnicity, marital or work status, or whether they rent or own their own home.
Councillor Nick Dorrington, Cabinet Member for Children, Families and Education at Portsmouth City Council, said: “Foster Portsmouth celebrates the diversity of our committed team of foster carers, and we are all proud to work with many individuals and couples from the LGBTQ+ community.”
Foster Portsmouth’s presentation at the Parenting Network and UK Pride’s ‘LGBTQ+ Routes to Parenthood’ event helped identify pathways to parenthood within the LGBTQ+ community. Attendees were also offered expert insights, lived experiences and an opportunity to connect with community members and support networks.
This Pride Month, Foster Portsmouth also aims to shine a light on the incredible efforts of our existing LGBTQ+ foster carers and thank them for their contribution to the care of vulnerable children and young people in the city and the immediate surrounding areas. Foster carers like sole carer Michael.
Michael, a full-time IT project manager, fosters teens with Foster Portsmouth. He shared: “Because I was fostered myself, I chose to become a foster carer rather than adopt. I had the same wonderful long-term carers who gave me amazing opportunities. I want to give something back to children who need care and stability in their lives.”
Michael has fostered a number of teenagers, including providing respite care for a sibling pair and an emergency placement, and three longer-term arrangements for teenage boys, one of whom was a child seeking safety and asylum.
“There have been many touching moments which makes it all worthwhile and lets me know that I’ve been a positive chapter in their story.”
READ MICHAEL’S STORY: Day in the life of a Portsmouth foster carer: Michael’s story – Foster Portsmouth
The Local Authority Fostering South East (LAFSE) virtual hub, launched last July, brings together the expertise of 18 councils from across the region, including Portsmouth City Council. Foster Portsmouth is part of a local cluster including the Southampton, the Isle of Wight and Hampshire councils, and together with other clusters within the hub, we all work collaboratively to provide the best support from the very start of a carer’s fostering journey.
We need additional foster carers with the skills and experience to help children develop a positive sense of their own identity, so we are asking individuals and couples in the LGBTQ+ community to consider the impact they could have on a child or young person’s life through fostering.
We’d welcome the opportunity to explore if our close-knit fostering community at Foster Portsmouth is also the right fit for you.
There are many types of fostering and everyone will be able to find one that will work for them and their family or commitments. This could be a short or long-term arrangement for a child or siblings until they’re ready to live independently or be reunited with family, support for children with a disability or children seeking safety and asylum, supported lodgings to develop their independent living skills, a parent and baby placement, or respite care.
Our Foster carers receive local round the clock support and ongoing quality training such as therapeutic care, including through our mentoring scheme and our innovative award-winning Mockingbird programme which provides a support network of other foster carers similar to that of an extended family. They also receive competitive fees, discounts, benefits and allowances, social activities, and free membership to The Fostering Network.
Our foster carers come from Portsmouth itself or the immediate surrounding areas, from Emsworth and Rowlands Castle to Gosport and Fareham, and the Isle of Wight and Hayling Island to Petersfield and Havant.
Start your journey…
Portsmouth City Council welcomes all enquiries about fostering. Our foster carers come from all walks of life and they all share the same commitment and motivation to make a positive difference to a child or young person’s life. We need more foster carers from diverse backgrounds to reflect the children and young people in our city.
If you are considering expanding your family through fostering, we would love to hear from you.
Could you make a difference to their life… and yours?
To enquire or to arrange a 1:1 with one of our experienced team or existing foster carers, please contact us.
