It's a goal! Wiltshire Council joins UK wide campaign to recruit more foster carers during the World Cup

Wiltshire Council is joining up with local authorities from across the UK to form a new virtual team for the World Cup with the aim of achieving just one goal - to recruit more foster carers.

Twenty six local authorities from across the UK have joined Local Councils United - a new virtual team - to share clips for each day of the World Cup and unique reasons why people should foster with their local council.

Each day of the football tournament a council shares a video with the message: "Strike now and join our fostering team and help a young person achieve their goal."

The campaign brings together a united fostering community, to share with everyone why people should foster with your local authority.

Football teams, young people and families are all featured in the clips during the World Cup campaign with the hash tag #FosterForYourCouncil2022

Kicking off the campaign will be Northumberland County Council with Medway Council providing the final video on Day 26.

Wiltshire will be featured on Day 23 of the World Cup Campaign  - and will include Rob and his birth daughter Erin, a keen player with Melksham Town Football Club, talking about the benefits of fostering. Rob and his wife Lucy have their own four daughters and have fostered with Wiltshire Council for five years.

Rob said: "Wiltshire Council has been fantastic at looking after us, giving us the suitable training. They're always at the end of the phone and we have a great relationship with our social workers as well which has been fantastic. We've certainly enjoyed our experience and let me tell you it's not easy all the time, it's certainly tough but those things in life which can be tough are often the most rewarding." You can watch Rob and Erin's clip on YouTube (opens new window).

Cllr Laura Mayes Cabinet Member for Children's Services said: " We are proud to join forces with local councils across the UK to raise the importance of fostering for your local council. We want to ask people 'Can you help a child in care to reach their life goals?' By working together we can make a difference in a child's life and becoming a foster carer with your local council means you are supported every step of the way and training is always available. Fostering and football brings people and communities together for a common purpose. Local authorities are coming together as a united fostering community, to share why you should foster with your local authority."

Fostering with your local council means all money is spent on frontline services and the child is more likely to be able to stay close to their school, friends and family networks. Wiltshire council has recently increased its fostering rates which range from £366 to £680 a week depending on people's skills and experience.

Fostering For Wiltshire Facebook will share the council's campaigns @fosteringinwiltshire (opens new window).

You can watch all the videos (opens new window) from the 26 councils.

Foster carers need to be over 21 years of age, have a spare bedroom, time to care for a child and a willingness to care and seek to understand young people who have experienced trauma and loss.

For more information, visit Fostering Wiltshire, email fostering@wiltshire.gov.uk (opens new window), call 0800 169 6321 or text the word Foster to 60002.