The University of East Anglia (UEA) has just introduced a new specialist therapeutic care course designed for foster carers. This course was made with the children in the care of councils in mind. The initiative, known as Foster East, aims to equip foster carers with essential skills to address complex behaviors among the 7,000 children currently in care across 11 councils in the region.
Dr Mark Gregory, UEA’s director of continuing professional development, said the need for this new program had never been greater. Foster East aims at people with at least 80 hours of skill-specific training. For the next two years, we’ll be taking 50 participants—our largest cohort yet! The course, starting this September, will be taught on a part-time basis and is equivalent to the first year of an undergraduate degree.
These are Bedford Borough, Cambridgeshire County, Central Bedfordshire, Essex County, Hertfordshire County, Luton Borough, Norfolk County, Peterborough City, Southend-on-Sea, Suffolk County, Thurrock.
Dr. Gregory stated that understanding the impact of trauma on children and young people’s behavior is crucial for foster carers. He explained that “this course has been designed to help foster carers to understand trauma-related behavior through a therapeutic lens, so they have the tools needed to build and maintain supportive relationships with children and young people in their care.”
Foster carers Aaron and Frankie Head shared their experiences, noting that fostering can often be “extremely challenging and a personally taxing mission.” They highlighted how remaining therapeutic allows them “to get to the root of behaviors and fuel ourselves with understanding of their experiences and subsequent needs.”
The government has provided initial funding for this pilot program, reinforcing its commitment to improving foster care quality in the region. Foster East’s intent is to strengthen the attachment between foster carers and the children and young people that they care for. Our specialty is in developing deep, authentic relationships. Through richer foundations of understanding around trauma and its effects, the program seeks to help children ward off self-destructive behavior by helping them understand themselves.
