Sarah and Pete were in the army before becoming foster carers. Using TACT’s Making Spaces Scheme, they managed to reunite siblings in their home.

The Ukraine war had just started, and the news showed children being sent to other countries with no parents. We had always said (fostering) was something we would like to do – but this made us take the next steps rather than just talking about it. Pete Googled ‘fostering’ and (TACT) was the first one to pop up. Also we saw that it was a charitable agency and everything gets put back in for the children.

The army gives you lots of transferable skills. The ones we use most are: communication – we need to be able to communicate effectively, not only with our children but outside agencies we have to deal with. Adaptability – things are constantly changing and we have to adapt to make things work. Time management is also used quite a lot – we like to be prepared as much as possible!

We have always had our (foster) boys in our life. We have taken them on holiday with us and more recently we had four out of the five children for two weeks over Christmas. Their sister was going to be moved onto another placement, so we were asked if we would consider having her join us. At the time we did not have the space in our house.

I asked TACT if it was something they could help with, as I did not want their sibling going anywhere else. Two weeks later, I was able to tell the boys their sister was coming to live with them they cheered and jumped up and down and it was a very emotional time. Their relationships with each other has grown stronger every day, just watching them together drawing or building forts and using their imaginations is heart warming and without a doubt it was the right thing to do. They are typical siblings who laugh together and argue – but who clearly love each other and will be there for each other.

TACT is amazing; even if your own social worker is unavailable, there are people waiting in the wings to help. Jim (TACT Fostering Recruitment Manager) sorted our Making Spaces out for us and although he had never met us, he went above and beyond to help us. We were very grateful to everyone that helped us and continue to do so.

I know it’s cliche but the difference we have made to the children’s lives – I just feel so proud when I see them interacting with people. They all have incredible personalities and looking at them now from when they first joined us we can see a massive difference, and so can our friends and family. I think we get as much out of our relationships as the children do. We feel honoured to have them as part of our life.

All the ‘firsts’ we have had with the children always makes us proud. It may be something little like going a bike ride or first time on a plane – capturing their excitement fills us with joy. Most of all it’s the love we are given and give. They are part of our family and always will be.

We have all become better people by having each other in our lives. I can’t imagine a life without them in it. All the training we have received opens your eyes to how we can make a difference in a child’s life by using PACE. We are a blended family, but definitely a family.

Our advice to people who are considering becoming foster carers is stop waiting and go for it! It’s easy to keep putting it off – just take that first step and see where it leads you!

TACT’s Making Spaces grants are intended to support our foster carers to bring an existing room into use for a foster child, or to create a new room altogether, in line with national fostering regulations. The scheme is about removing barriers and achieving positive outcomes, such as reuniting siblings placed in different households.