'If it wasn't for my foster carer I'd be in prison,' says Swindon man

Swindon has more than 300 looked-after children

A man who was taken into foster care as a teenager is urging more people to come forward to help Swindon's most vulnerable children.

Ofsted inspectors have urged Swindon Council to urgently increase the number and consistency of local fostering.

Nationally, there has been a marked drop in the number of council-registered foster placements.

Council leaders said external agency fostering was costing Swindon taxpayers tens of thousands of pounds per week.

Peter Davies, 22, was taken into care as a teenager

"If it wasn't for my carer then I would probably be in prison by now," said Peter Davies, describing to BBC Radio Wiltshire how his foster carer helped him manage his explosions of anger.

The 22-year-old recalls how he was told at school that he would be taken into care at the end of the school day, following the result of a social services court case he knew nothing about.

"Me being quite an angry teen I lashed out and decided to break a lot of things", with the experience leaving him feeling "scared, anxious and depressed".

"My carer taught me that there's more to me than just anger frustration shyness, anxiety, all that stuff".

Peter hopes more people in Swindon can be persuaded to become foster carers, if they can get past any preconceptions of what children might be like.

"If people treat them with respect, that angry kid can become the most decent kid, most respectful kid and most intelligent kid you could ever meet".

Council leader Jim Robbins wants looked-after children to be homed closer to Swindon

Swindon, like many councils, has a significant shortage of local foster placements, but the issue in the town has been a particular focus in recent months after Ofsted rated the Children's Services department 'Inadequate'.

Swindon has more than 300 looked-after children, but around 40% can end up being sent to foster placements through agencies, often many miles away.

"We want those children to be closer to Swindon in the best possible placement for their safety and future, but also in ones that we can afford and aren't going to mean the council really struggles for money", said council leader Jim Robbins.

He said private agency residential foster placements are costing the council up to £30,000 per child, per week.

"Companies running these places know that local authorities have a duty to look after these children and they are charging whatever they want. It's making it really difficult for local authorities to cope," he said.

Jane Collins, director of foster support, has warned foster care costs could spiral

At a recent recruitment drive, 64 members of the public enquired about fostering during its first month, more than triple the typical monthly total.

But it will be many months before any are approved, trained and ready to take in foster children.

The organisation which represents carers, Foster Support, described this situation as a "crisis whirlwind".

New Ofsted data shows an 11% decrease in local authority foster carer households and 8% in mainstream fostering places since 2019.

Foster Support Director Jane Collins warned: "It becomes a situation almost like market forces, supply and demand, if all's that available is more and more expensive options then its a complete cost spiral for local authorities."

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