From nursing to fostering - by retired health visitor Sharon
Retired health visitor Sharon shares her journey from the NHS into fostering. She explains how working part-time hours allowed her to continue doing the work she loved when she became a foster carer. She also talks about how the skills she built during her decades-long healthcare career have proved invaluable as a foster carer.
Long-term foster carer Sharon and her husband, Ross, foster with Durham County Council fostering. Sharon enjoyed a long career with the NHS before switching to part-time working and fostering alongside her role.
She has recently retired from her role as a health visitor, while Ross continues to work outside the home. The couple have two older children who have been involved with fostering from the very beginning.
Here, Sharon shares her journey to becoming a foster carer. In her own words, she talks about how fostering has made their lives and hearts feel full. She also explores the realities of fostering, the challenges and rewards, and how becoming a foster carer has proved a logical and fulfilling step.
Fostering alongside an NHS role then taking the next step
For many NHS and healthcare staff, the idea of fostering brings up practical questions:
- Can I foster alongside shifts?
- How will I balace both roles?
Sharon's experience shows that flexible or parttime work and having a support network can make fostering possible. There's also the option of fostering around your role through flexible short break fostering for holiday weeks or weekends.
"I started in the NHS in 1985 as a student nurse. It feels like a long time ago now. Throughout my nursing career, I've tended to work with children and babies. I've worked in intensive care and I've worked in the community. And latterly, at the end of my career, I was a health visitor. It was amazing, because I could foster as well. I went part time and it was flexible working hours, so I got to do two things in my life that I loved to do."
You could already be imagining what it might feel like when a child comes to stay with you for the first time. You'll receive training and support to help you feel prepared. You will also have a team around you, including your own dedicated social worker.
For Sharon and her family, that first fostering experience turned into a long-term arrangement. She still remembers the day of the little boy's arrival.
"The first child who came to stay with me was a little boy who's still with me, and he'd had a difficult time. He walked into our house, and he had a great big bear called Grandad Bear. And sorry, I feel emotional talking about it. He had this little blue coat on, and he walked in, and I really fell in love with him straight away.
"And he stayed with us. We're planning to adopt him, which he knows about. He's just been amazing. To watch him grow from this little, shy, nervous boy into the lovely, confident, handsome young man that he is - who helps us with the other foster children - It's just, I don't want to sound corny, but it's a privilege."
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How fostering keeps our home and lives full
When you apply to foster, you'll talk with our team about what fostering might look like for you. You will explore things like what your home life is like now, if you have a spare bedroom or rooms, and whether you already have children living at home. It's all about getting to know you and helping you consider how fostering might fit for you.
For Sharon, being a foster carer means having a homelife that's full and never dull, and building relationships with other fostering families, too:
"Well, our home, it's lots of fun. It's never, never quiet. Some people say we're crazy, in a nice way. And we play a lot. We just do normal things. We go for walks and bike rides. We have days out. I love holidays, and so does the little one that I look after. We call him our son, and he's like our son, and I don't feel that he's fostered. We also have other children that come over for sleepovers, because I support some other foster carers, and we just give the children a normal family life."
Being prepared for the challenges
Sharon is the first to admit that caring for children who have often had difficult starts in life comes with its own unique challenges. Ultimately, she has been able to navigate those tougher times with support:
"I describe fostering as a roller coaster. You get a lot of ups, but there are a few little downs. I think it's challenging when you know sometimes the histories and backgrounds and what children have gone through. I mean, the emotional impact does take its toll sometimes. And I have found some difficulties but got through it; you know it's like life. Every family has ups and downs. But don't let that put you off if you're thinking about fostering, because the ups outweigh the downs."
How a healthcare background can help you as a foster carer
As an NHS worker, Sharon had knowledge in areas like safeguarding, which she knew would help her as a foster carer. However, over the years, she's also found that other healthcare skills and experience have been useful:
"Because I was a health visitor, I learned about childhood abuse and about neglect. Being empathetic and having that understanding, love and care, and coming from a caring role has really helped. But having an insight into health has also helped as well. As a health visitor, I looked at child growth and development and having that skillset has really helped."
Say you'll be their care and support, and we'll be yours
For anyone considering fostering alongside their NHS role or as their next step, Sharon has this message to share: "If anybody's really wanting to think about fostering, they're on the verge of retirement, or wanting to change their career, or have both... I would say you won't regret it."
As a foster carer with your local council, you'll get specialist training and a financial package of support so you can provide the care and support a child needs. You'll join the North East's largest community of foster carers with peers and professionals ready to welcome and support you.
When you're ready to find out more, the Foster with North East team is here to answer your questions. Simply complete a quick fostering enquiry and we'll be in touch.
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