March 2020 - The process
It was March 2020. We were so happy to be starting the process of fostering.
We had met a social worker and we were now looking at starting the Skills to Foster training. We had also met another lovely lady from Rochdale Borough Council who had been out and completed some other checks with us. We were excited and apprehensive about the process. We were busy decorating our new home and had recently returned from a mini-break to Poland where we had got engaged. In February, Anthony had lost one of his best friends to cancer. We were both working full time and working extra hours to pay for our new house. Anthony was also in the first year of his degree. Life was certainly eventful. And then it happened. A new disease had been discovered and life was about to change in a big way!!
When we first heard about coronavirus (COVID-19), we did not really take it seriously to be honest. Not being people who took much notice of the mostly depressing news we carried on with our lives and even when we were being sent alerts to our mobiles, whilst we were in Poland, we did not envisage what was about to happen. Coronavirus had taken over the world and we could not just ignore what was happening. It was all very real!! I worked with homeless people with complex needs and my job became exceedingly difficult. I was still grieving for my friend and I found it hard when all I could concentrate on was the coronavirus pandemic. We were in a lockdown and the worse news of all came to us when we were advised that we would not be able to carry on with the fostering process now due to the current circumstances. To say we were a bit gutted is an understatement!!
Life carried on and we now watched the news daily waiting for updates on what was going on. The world felt like a scary place. We were both key workers, so we carried on going to work as normal. It felt strange when you were out and about. There was no one about, the roads were empty, you had to queue to get in the supermarket. We could not see any of our friends and family but worse of all for us was that our fostering was on hold!!
We remained positive about things. There were people worse off than us. At least we were still working and getting out every day, Daily walks became the norm and we appreciated that. There were so many new cases and deaths being reported. It was very scary. A couple of friends contracted COVID-19 and were poorly from it. Thankfully, they recovered.
'We enjoyed both the training and the assessments. The people at Rochdale Borough Council were all great. They were friendly and kind and put us at ease throughout the whole process'
After being told we were on hold we finally had good news that we were able to continue with our assessment and everything would be done online. We were excited again!! Zoom, Skype, WhatsApp and messenger video had become the new norm. We were booked in to complete the Skills to Foster training over Zoom and the social worker started to book in assessments over Skype. Things were moving along again!! We enjoyed both the training and the assessments. The people at Rochdale Borough Council were all great. They were friendly and kind and put us at ease throughout the whole process. It did feel weird talking to someone on a screen about your most intimate, personal things, but for us, it was therapeutic to be able to talk through these things and be open and honest. Things were moving along nicely, and our assessing social worker advised us she was taking us to panel. Oh, my days!! Panic set in a bit!! What if we did not get approved? What if we say something wrong? What if we swear by accident? What if we stutter and say the wrong answer? All this, and more, swept through our minds.
The date was set for 8 September 2020. Our assessing social worker sent us a set of questions that they wanted answering before we went. We had a meeting with her before panel and she put our minds at rest. Still, the night before, neither of us could sleep. We were so nervous and at the same time excited! The next day came and we were due to log on at 9.30am. We sat nervously at the table with the laptop in front of us. We went to click on the link, and it would not load!! Oh, my days. Trust us. We started to panic and kept trying to get on the video link. Eventually, we managed to get on.
'The chair of the panel then said the best words we could ever have asked for. She said that the panel were happy to approve us today'
There before us were all these people. About six of them. We clutched each other's hand under the table. The chair of the meeting explained the process and everybody introduced themselves. They each asked us a question and we answered them as best we could. Our stomachs were churning, and it was so nerve-wracking. All the people on the panel were lovely, as was our assessing social worker, and we soon felt more comfortable as the meeting went on. When everyone has asked their questions the chair then advised they would be having a discussion and asked us to wait in the virtual waiting room. We sat there tentatively and waited for them to come back. We thought he did alright. Not too bad. I suppose them little doubts start creeping in. This was something we both really wanted so much, and we were still scared we would not get approved. The panel resumed after 5 minutes (believe me it felt like an hour!) The chair of the panel then said the best words we could ever have asked for. She said that the panel were happy to approve us today.
OH YES!! RESULT!!
We both got emotional and when we looked at each other we could both see tears welling up in our eyes. The panel wished us luck and told us they would see us in a year time. It was just so amazing. For us personally, it was one of our dreams realised. We excitedly starting to tell all our family and friends we had been approved and they were all made up for us. Our social worker advised she would speak to us soon. And then whilst we were still processing the news, we had an email. The title of the email said it all…POTENTIAL PLACEMENT! Oh, my days it is really happening…