In Pursuit of Foster Carers: Bloom and Fostering Awareness Month

Together We Grow: Bloom 2024

Tusla – Child and Family Agency marked the beginning of its annual Fostering Awareness Month with its presence at Bord Bia Bloom 2024, unveiling a stunning garden titled Together We Grow. A heartfelt tribute to Ireland’s foster carers and the children they support, the garden was not only a symbolic representation of growth and care; it also captured the public’s imagination, winning the prestigious People’s Choice Award for 2024.

The Tusla Fostering Garden, designed by landscape artist Robert Moore with input from foster carers and care-experienced young people, served as both a physical and an emotional centrepiece for the launch of Tusla’s Fostering Awareness Month. The garden conveyed the journey of children in care: how they can grow, flourish and reach their potential when provided with a safe, supportive and loving home.

In attendance was Seán Walsh, who became an approved foster carer after visiting Tusla’s Bloom garden in 2023.

‘My partner Clinton and I moved back to Ireland after many decades away about two years ago,’ he said. ‘We were sitting in our house talking about how good our life was, and how good we have it, and wouldn’t it be nice to share that with children.

‘The idea of fostering came up. Nothing happened, but then my sister took me to Bloom as a birthday present. We came along and saw Tusla. We approached the stand and the next thing I was on training courses and having an assessment from social workers.

‘When I left Ireland in the 1980s, I never thought it would be possible for a gay man to open up and have children in his house. Suddenly here I am with my partner, at over 60 years of age, back in beautiful Ireland with a total change of attitude.’

Ireland is recognised as a global leader in foster care; however, the need for new foster carers remains urgent. Through the Tusla Fostering Bloom garden and the broader awareness campaign for Fostering Awareness Month, Tusla aimed to reach people across the country and challenge misconceptions about who can foster.

‘There are many myths about fostering,’ said Tusla’s National Foster Care Lead. ‘The reality is, our foster carers come from all walks of life – whether they are single, renting, over 40, in same-sex relationships, part of the Traveller community, from migrant backgrounds, or living with a disability. What matters most is the ability to provide a safe and supportive home.’

The campaign aimed to recruit new foster carers for all types of care, including short-term, long-term, emergency placements and respite fostering. As demand continues to grow, it is increasingly important that Tusla finds carers within local communities, allowing children to maintain vital links with their friends, schools, sports and wider social networks.

Throughout June, Tusla hosted a nationwide programme of events, both in-person and online, to inform and engage potential foster carers. These sessions offered the public a chance to speak directly with Tusla’s fostering teams and current foster carers, ask questions, and explore if fostering might be the right path for them and their families.

Winning the People’s Choice Award at Bloom was a proud moment for Tusla, but more than that, it served as a powerful reminder of the impact that foster carers make every day, often behind the scenes. As Tusla marked the year of its 10th anniversary, the Together We Grow garden was a timely reflection of the Agency’s ongoing mission: to promote and enhance safety, wellbeing and outcomes for children in Ireland. Foster carers have played, and continue to play, a vital role in that mission.