Hungerford Town wearing ‘Foster Now’ appeal on front of new shirts to support children in need of a home

There’s a new name on the front of Hungerford Town’s shirt this season.

The Crusaders new strip is adorned with the words ‘Foster Now’, in support of West Berkshire Council’s family placement team.

The West Berkshire family placement team works to recruit, assess and train foster carers and continues to support families throughout the process.

Once a family is matched with a child, an allocated supervising social worker provides ongoing support, supervision and advice.

The wider team, including family support workers, placement officers and specialist therapeutic workers, also work hard to ensure children and carers have access to support meetings, health and safety checks, assessments and consultations.

Around 30,000 children enter the UK care system every year and fostering can be a truly life-changing experience, both for foster carers and the children in need of a home.

Thousands of new carers are needed each year and, by supporting West Berkshire Council’s fostering team, the football club are hoping to inspire more people to help.

It’s a cause particularly close to manager Danny Robinson’s heart, with his parents having been foster carers for 18 years.

“No child should be without a home,” he said.

“West Berkshire is crying out for foster carers and kids need a place to call home.

“We want to get the message out as much as possible and for people to come on board and help, I’ve got first hand experience of how impactful it can be.

“I can’t thank my football club enough for this gesture.”

West Berkshire Council offers comprehensive training to prospective carers and a generous weekly fostering allowance, as well as unwavering support throughout the process.

More information is available on West Berkshire Council’s website, where potential carers can hear from current carers in their own words, while an information pack is also available on request.