“Don’t forget to tell him I like dinosaurs now.”
Eight-year-old Liam clutched his backpack as he climbed into a car that would take him to his new foster home.
His younger sister, Ava, stood on the pavement with tears in her eyes.
For the first time in their lives, they weren’t going home together.
While their story is fictional, the reality behind it is all too real. Every day, brothers and sisters enter care needing safety, stability and love. Yet many face another heartbreaking loss: being separated from each other because there aren’t enough foster carers with the space to welcome sibling groups.
For children who have already experienced significant upheaval, losing daily contact with a brother or sister can be one of the most difficult parts of entering care.
That’s why foster carers who have the space to welcome sibling groups are so important.
Why sibling relationships matter
When everything else changes, brothers and sisters often remain a child’s strongest connection to their past.
They share memories, experiences and a unique understanding of what they’ve been through. Sometimes a sibling is the only person who truly understands a child’s worries, fears and feelings.
The Children’s Commissioner for England found that sibling relationships provide children in care with comfort, emotional support, stability and a sense of belonging. For many children, their siblings are among the most important relationships in their lives.
Keeping brothers and sisters together can help children settle more quickly into foster care, maintain important family connections and feel less alone during a difficult time.
The reality: too many siblings are still being separated
Unfortunately, there simply aren’t enough fostering households able to care for sibling groups.
Research from the Children’s Commissioner estimates that more than one in three children in care in England who have siblings in care are separated from them, affecting around 20,000 children.
One of the key reasons identified is the shortage of suitable homes where brothers and sisters can live together. Larger sibling groups face even greater challenges when it comes to finding foster families with enough space.
These statistics represent real children who may move into care and find themselves living apart from their brothers and sisters, despite the importance of those relationships.
The Difference You Could Make
Imagine being a child entering foster care after experiencing significant upheaval.
Now imagine being told that although you and your sibling are safe, you won’t be living together.
For many children, that separation creates another layer of loss.
Now imagine hearing something different:
“We’ve found a foster family where you can stay together.”
A foster carer with the space to welcome siblings can help keep one of the most important relationships a child has.
It can mean sharing birthday celebrations, supporting each other through difficult days and knowing a familiar face is never far away.
Could you help keep siblings together?
If you’ve ever considered fostering and have room in your home to welcome siblings, now could be the perfect time to explore what’s possible.
By opening your home, you could help ensure that siblings can remain together as they begin the next chapter of their lives.
Find out more
If you’d like to learn more about fostering sibling groups and the support available to foster carers, call our friendly team on 0121 303 7575, or enquire online today.
A simple conversation could be the first step towards keeping brothers and sisters together when they need each other most.
