On the day, during the Jummah Khutbah (Friday Sermon), mosques across the country will talk about the important role foster carers play and the need for more foster carers from a variety of backgrounds to come forward to meet the current gaps within the sector which sees a shortfall of Muslim foster carers.
There are a number of barriers and misconceptions that deter Muslim people from taking the next step in fostering a child despite expressing the desire to do so.
Throughout this fortnight we are encouraging all mosques and Muslim communities to talk about fostering and the need for Muslim heritage children to have carers of the same heritage and match. As a final event for this fortnight - this online fostering information event will talk about what fostering is and how it works as well as give you the opportunity to listen to Muslim foster carers and ask them about their experiences. We also plan to have one of our faith advisors with us so you can ask any fostering related questions that you might have and get direct advice from an imam.
From data that was conducted, here are some concerns that individuals have about fostering:
We know that Muslim children are disproportionately represented within the care system and we urgently need to work on bridging these gaps and making foster care a more accessible option for BAME Muslim individuals who wish to foster.
There has been keen interest from within the communities who would like to foster but may have concerns they want to address and this day provides ample opportunity for people to seek advice and guidance on the next steps to make that journey possible.
Foster Friday takes place on 13th and 22nd May and is an opportunity for raising awareness about fostering within the Muslim community with a particular focus on bringing in more BAME foster carers into the sector. Please register to help us get the message out.
