FOSTER carers are urging potential parents to sign up and help a child this week, as the number of children in care continues to rise.

The charity Community Foster Care (CFC), which finds foster carers for children in Swindon and Wiltshire, is launching a recruitment campaign to encourage people to help children in need by offering them a loving home.

Amanda Berridge, 37, from Groundwell West, has been a foster carer with the charity for the past two years and recently fostered her fourth child, a 15-year-old girl.

Mother-of-one Amanda, who previously worked in sales, said it was the most rewarding job she has ever had.

“It’s just the difference it makes to a child’s life,” she said.

“To see how much you can enrich their lives by giving them a stable home and the care they need is remarkable.

“Without a doubt, it’s the best job that I have ever had.

“As a matter of fact, I don’t even consider it a job because I enjoy it so much.

“It makes a huge difference to the child you are caring for, and at the same time it makes you feel like you’re part of something brilliant.

“I really like to be a part of that process of getting them back on their feet.

“If people sign up it will be the best decision they make.

“You can make someone’s life better.”

And Amanda said she had been provided with plenty of support and guidance.

“I go on practical training courses to help me out.

“What’s great is that I get that support, so I can be a better carer and also know that I’m not on my own,” she said.

As part of the new drive to recruit foster carers, CFC also held an information session at the McArthur Glen Designer Outlet in Swindon, where shoppers had the chance to find out what fostering is all about.

Mark Goulding, supervising social worker for CFC, said he believed numbers of children in care were rising due to the difficult financial climate.

“The number of single parents is on the rise, he said.

“Being in a recession has made poverty more widespread.

“There’s an increasing amount of financial as well as emotional pressure on parents – it’s a huge commitment to be a parent in the present age.

“These are children who, through no fault of their own, need support, understanding and a safe place to be at a very difficult time in their young lives.

“Foster carers make a huge difference to their life chances, offering them the kind of stability they may have never known before, and enabling them to develop and grow.

“Often people are not sure whether they are capable of becoming a foster carer, but usually they are.

“You may not have had children of your own, but you may well have the life experience that would make you a great foster parent.”

There are currently more than 400 children in foster care in Wiltshire.

Anyone over the age of 25 can apply to become a foster carer.

Community Foster Care is a charity and not-for-profit agency, which finds carers for children in Swindon and Wiltshire.

To find out more about how to become a foster carer, visit www.communityfostercare.co.uk.