Scotland's fostering crisis: Couple reflect on decade of caring for children

Andrew and Sharon Mulvena have been fostering for more than a decade.

In that time they have provided a home to more than ten children – sometimes for a matter of weeks and in other cases over a number of years.

The couple started to discuss their options after struggling with fertility issues.

Sharon has a background in working with children with learning disabilities and was inspired to look into fostering as a result of her work.

That led to meetings with the charity Barnardo’s and embarking on numerous training courses. Soon they were welcoming children from a variety of backgrounds into their home.

Recalling their first Christmas as foster parents, Sharon told STV News: “I remember sitting at one of the coffee shops on Buchanan Street and I had bags of stuff and I was crying.

“This woman said to me ‘oh hen, are you okay?’

“And I just said, ‘no, I’m fine, I’m not crying because I’m sad, I’m crying because I’m happy, I’ve got wee kids living with me this year’.”

She continued: “You give a lot of yourself, and you need to give a lot of yourself, there’s no two ways about it. You have got to invest yourself in these kids.

“But you certainly get a lot back.”

Andrew says the variety of the job keeps them on their toes: “(We’ve had) very varied kids—different backgrounds, different challenges. Every day is a new day and a learning experience for us and the kids.”

But people like Sharon and Andrew are in short supply. In fact, Barnardo’s say that fostering in Scotland is in “crisis”.

Latest figures from the Care Inspectorate show that there were 2,988 approved foster carer homes in Scotland as of December 2023.

Just a year prior, there were 3,261, a drop of 8%.

And that trend only looks to be continuing in the wrong direction. In 2023, fewer new homes were approved than in any of the four preceding years.

Barnardo say roughly 500 more foster-approved homes are required to meet demand.

Anne Whyte, an assistant director at the charity, told STV News: “Foster care has continued to decline year-on-year, and we want to encourage everybody from all walks of life to make that first step.

“What makes a good carer is having that time, that passion, to care for a child, to want to be involved.”

Sharon and Andrew have one child who has lived with them for most of the time, and they’ve been foster carers.

They say watching him grow from being a toddler to a school-aged boy is one of the best parts of the job.

Andrew said: “The wee guy that we’ve got just now, we’ve had him since he was two. We’ve seen him go to nursery and progress. He’s in primary school now, and he’s loving it.”

The couple say they would “absolutely” encourage others to look at becoming foster carers.

Sharon said: “For everything we’ve given the kids, they’ve given as much back, given us something that I never could have had myself.”