The special mum who has helped more than 70 babies

Janet Wilcock cares for many babies who are suffering drug withdrawal as their mothers were addicts during pregnancy

A foster mum who has cared for 70 babies has spoken about how rewarding it is to see them thrive.

Janet Wilcock often takes in tots whose mothers are addicted to alcohol or drugs and cares for them for anything from a few days up to two years, as they wait for adoption.

Nominated in the Carer category at the recent BBC Radio Leeds Make a Difference awards, most of the babies she has looked after had been born suffering the effects of drug withdrawal.

"By the time they move on they have got rid of most of their pain and everything that they go through," she said. "It is a challenging job but it is very rewarding at the end."

Janet, from Headingley, with one of the babies she has fostered

The Make a Difference awards was set up during the Covid pandemic to recognise people who serve their communities.

Leeds City Council's Helen Hayden said she wanted to encourage more people to provide a loving home for vulnerable youngsters.

The councillor said she was "incredibly proud" there were people such as Janet looking after the most vulnerable children in the city.

"To hear Janet’s story and the way that she thinks and loves these children, and the work that she puts in, is invaluable," she said.

Janet was nominated for a BBC Make A Difference award

"We now have young adults walking around that have benefited, and I would not like to think what their lives would have been like if they hadn’t had Janet in the first few months of their life."

She said there were more than 1,500 children in social care in Leeds, many with different foster care needs.

"What Janet does is fairly niche and we do need people like that, but we also need people who give a short-term break for foster carers. There are lots of different types of carers that we need."

Government figures show 2,960 children were adopted in England in 2022-23

Hayden added the council would urge anyone interested in becoming a foster carer to research what was involved by visiting the Foster 4 Leeds website.

She said: "It needs to be a robust process because we are talking about the most vulnerable people in the city so we need to get it right for everybody.

"These potential carers really need to know what they are taking on and we need to make sure they don’t regret their decision."

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