Care to Listen?

The Solution 28 scheme provides children and young people with a supportive, stable home for a period of 28 days, whilst long-term provisions are arranged. Five Rivers foster carers, Sharon and Ken, talk about their fostering journey in an interview with BBC Radio Gloucestershire. If you would like to find out more about Solution 28 Fostering in Gloucester, visit our website here: https://five-rivers.org/fostering/locations/south-west/gloucester/solution-28/

Listen as our CEO and Founder, Pam McConnell, and our head of Assessment and Therapy, Richard Cross, reflect on the Diversity Role Model podcast series.

Listen as our diversity role models discuss their religious beliefs and what that means to them.

In this episode of our podcast series with our diversity role models, two foster carers discuss sexuality.

A group of our young people have worked with Voicebox to explore their digital identity. Listen to their reflections in this podcast.

In this episode, our diversity role models Wayne and Aaliyah discuss race and ethnicity.

Listen as Angelina, one of our care leavers, and our London and East Fostering Manager, Jeannette, discuss living with a disability.

In this podcast, foster carer Vicky and Olivia, Participation Lead for Five Rivers, discuss transitions within gender.

Listen as Margaret, from our Finance Team and Lauren, from our Communications Team, discuss their perceptions of age.

Listen as one of our foster carers Pete, and Asa from our Assessment and Therapy Team talk about masculinity.

This International Women's Day, listen as our Head of HR, Kate Bromfield and Hannah Bradley, a Five Rivers Care Leaver discuss their experience of being a woman.

Listen as a group of our young people talk about diversity and inclusion with our Participation Lead, Olivia and Hannah from Diversity Marketplace.

Listen as a group of our young people and foster carer, Rae, unpack gender identity and explore the use of pronouns.

In this final episode in our Care to Listen? Series celebrating #NationalCareLeaversWeek, Five Rivers Child Care CEO and founder Pam McConnell and Assessment and Therapy Research Assistant Hannah Gilding discuss some of the issues that care leavers can sometimes face and what Five Rivers can do, as an organisation, to continue providing valuable and long lasting attachment and support to care leavers, from the families that foster with us. The episode also highlights the use of language when judging the success of care leavers and how the work of Five Rivers as a social enterprise aids in supporting young people, as they transition into independence.

In this episode, Sarah-Jane, 19, talks about how her love for dodgeball has led her to a life-changing foster placement with her dodgeball coach. Sarah Jane’s positive relationships with her social workers meant that she felt like she was always able to share her feelings, and, in turn, be better supported. Her care leaver journey has been well supported by friends, old carers and Five Rivers and Sarah - Jane is hopeful to continue on with a supported by friends, old carers and the organisation is giving Sarah-Jane a good future.

Ric Flo is a rapper, artist, care leaver, young achiever and dream believer. In this upbeat, warm and confident interview Ric speaks about his care leaving journey, which he faced with determination. He shares how a Christmas spent alone one set him off on a tenacious journey which brought him to delivering music workshops to care experienced young people. His latest album – ‘Rise of the Phoenix’ tells us of his experience leaving care and how he uses his music to help him channel and process his authentic life.

In this week's episode of Care to Listen, Katharine Anderson from the Five Rivers Child Care Assessment and Therapy Team talks about the subtle unspoken power that Sons and Daughters can have on the development of children who are fostered.

Foster carer Veronica and her birth son Adam, from Chester talk about how their drip to an agricultural; show brought them to a Foster Careline stand and how this ignited their journey into the world of fostering.

Keila was a child who spent most of her life in the care system but her last placement gave her a sense of family. Listen to Keila speaking fondly about how she felt part of the family and how fostering made a positive difference in her life.

Listen to our own care experienced foster carer Julie and her son Owen discuss their want to help others through fostering and what opportunities it provides, to reflect and to empathise.

Join us on the first episode of Care to Listen? Series 3 as we speak to Amy, a daughter of a family that fosters. Amy tells us of her experience and how it has sparked a realisation, that she wanted to devote her life and career to working with children and young people. Amy now recognises the unspoken impact that sons and daughters of fostering families have over the lives of children who are fostered.

This powerful, poetic rap expresses the different experiences and feelings of our young people in foster care. Some sad, some joyful, some regrets, some hopeful. The young people wrote and performed their own track with the help of care experienced hip hop artist Ric Flo to explore their feelings about foster care, and uplift one another with positive statements about the future. The rap workshop was organised by our Five Rivers Midlands and North offices in Celebration of Care Day 2020. This is a music production of the Five Rivers Child Care family participation programme.

An instrumental track composed and performed by a group of young people in foster care. The track was recorded as part of a rap workshop organised by our Five Rivers Midlands and North offices in Celebration of Care Day 2020. The leader was Ric Flo, a care experienced rapper. This art is a product of the Five Rivers Child Care family participation programme. five-rivers.org/about-us/participation/

This beautiful and uplifting song entitled 'Dreams' was written and performed by a group young girls in the care of our foster families. They decided to call themselves 'Five Rivers Foster Sisters'. Recorded at a Rap Master Class for young people led by care experienced hip hop artist, Ric Flo, as part of Five Rivers' participation programme. Lyrics: Dreams, Good ones, bad ones Who can decide? But each little bad one kills me inside not a lot of people cared nobody was there now my life has changed and support I have gained Chorus Always safe and snug always warm Now I dare to trust Now I dare to care Now I know someone is there As I ambled through the grass I had a vision from the past I pushed it to the side And I began to glide Up with the wind I flew And then I knew that I was safe from you Chorus Always safe and snug always warm Now I dare to trust Now I dare to care Now I know someone is there And now I’m happy in foster care I’ve got my new loving family there I’ve got my future planned My dreams to achieve My battles to defeat I will succeed

In celebration of Care Day 2020, a group young people from Five Rivers Fostering in London and the East of England enjoyed a rap workshop. Care-experienced artist and rapper Ric Flo, member of UK Hip Hop collective Jungle Brown, led the session at the Spotlight Studio in London. The young people developed their own words, played drums and learned how to use the sound engineering equipment. This rap is the authentic voice of their lived experience - we share it with you to celebrate the voices and creativity of young people in care. More info: https://five-rivers.org/news/celebrate-care-day/

In the last show of the series we turn the microphone on our three young podcasters, K, J and H. We ask them what they think 'Care to Listen' has revealed. Which of our care experienced experts and achievers has inspired them the most, and have their aspirations changed as a result? Find out more about our podcast on the Five Rivers website: https://five-rivers.org/care-to-listen-to-our-young-people/

Episode 12: Caring Amaan is one of three brothers. His mother, Usma, is a teaching assistant with a passion for helping young people overcome their difficulties in the classroom. Together they make a Five Rivers fostering family - offering patience, tolerance and safety to looked after children. Listen to them being interviewed by Aaliah, the teenage birth child of another Five Rivers family. Her in-depth probing reveals what inspires them to foster. This podcast was made during Fostering Fortnight 2019. Find out more about how you could become a foster carer: https://www.five-rivers.org/could-you-be-one-of-the-8000-foster-carers-required-to-stem-current-shortfall-across-the-uk/

Episode 11: Yusuf grew up in care and is now an artist, poet, writer and trainer. As an adopter and foster carer, he feels strongly about the words used to stigmatise children in care. Yusuf uses poetry and art to process his experiences and tells our young podcaster why he thinks care experienced people like him are so creative. Episode 10 of our series of podcasts by and about care experienced people. Produced by Five Rivers Child Care's Youth Council.

Episode 10: Care leaver Tolu was put into care at the age of 5. Her foster carer and social worker supported her ambition to get into a private school. Tolu tells our young podcaster how she adapted to a culture of high-flying aspiration, then left school at 18 to live alone, before applying to University, where she is now studying Management and Computer Science. Tolu is also a poet: soundcloud.com/user-379686032/img-11861

Episode 9: Rachel Springford entered care at age 5. She left school - and care - at 16 with no GCSEs. At 30 years old, Rachel realised she wanted to make a difference. She went back to college to get her English and Maths qualifications, did an access course, and obtained a BA (Hons) degree in social work. She is now a Frontline Consultant Social Worker in St Helens, helping fast track graduates to get into Social Work. She shares some tales from her youth, her journey to being a care professional and why we need a better deal for young people when they leave residential care. More info about our podcasts: www.five-rivers.org/care-to-listen-to-our-young-people/

Episode 8: Care experienced Ian shares his remarkable life story with our podcasters and offers some great advice for care-experienced listeners to help deal with feelings of stigma. Ian Dickson leads a visionary force behind the first ever Care Experienced Conference. The one day event kickstarts a massive culture change by uniting care experienced people of all ages. The aim is a community that can influence decision making at the highest levels and drive improvements to the system: he’s frustrated that we live in a world where homelessness is still a reality for some care leavers.

Episode 7: Dr Cat Hugman grew up in care. She is now a lecturer in social work with a PhD in the lives of care-experienced adults. She tells her story to our young podcaster, and explains why she chose to get involved with the first ever national event to unite the care experienced community in England - the Care Experienced Conference. Cat is also a core member of the independent foster carer panel for The Fostering Company in the North East of England. Recorded by a member of Five Rivers’ Youth Council.

Episode 6: Karylle’s a care-experienced activist and social work expert who overcame huge challenges as a child in care to become a University-educated advisor to schools and colleges. She explains to our young podcasters why it is important for them to take advantage of every opportunity, benefit and support on offer to help care leavers get into higher education - and enjoy it when they get there!

Episode 5: As the founder of Five Rivers Child Care, Pam McConnell is committed to making a real difference for children who have been abused or neglected. Pam is interviewed by a young person in Five Rivers' care. She was asked whether children should be shown love when they're in care.

Episode 4 - Listen to Stuart Haden of Investing in Children talk about how things have changed since the days he was in care in the 1970’s and 80’s. Our young podcaster, K, 17 is keen to know how he overcame his challenges to become both a successful businessman and co-director of the Durham-based children’s rights organisation Investing in Children. Stuart explains why he is insisting that society supports our young people up to the age of 25.

In episode 3 of 'Care to Listen?', our young podcasters M. and J.K. interview creative rapper and artist Ric Flo. Ric’s debut album, ‘A Boy Called Ric’ is a reflective journey about his life in foster care which has resonated greatly with people who feel under-represented and undervalued. Ric shares the challenges he faced in care: the relationships he built with foster carers, social workers and school helped him to follow his dreams to achieve recognition as an artist and musician. The backing track on this podcast series was provided by Ric, thank you for sharing this with us.

Listen episode 2 of our podcast series - recorded for Care Day 15 February 2019. Our young people M and JK meet the Children's Commissioner for England, Anne Longfield. They are intrigued by Anne's claim to have superpowers to defend the rights of children that are often overlooked by policy makers in government. "Isn't it scary to stand in front of government and tell them what to do?" they ask? Find out Anne's answer to this and other very relevant questions about issues affecting the lives of our young people in care.

Episode 1 of our podcast series 'Care to Listen?' Callum Lynch of Who Cares? Scotland is striving to help care experienced people who feel ostracised and marginalised to experience a lifetime of love.