A year of celebrations

This year we celebrated 10 years of Affinity! We got together on a beautiful, sunny day in August to mark 10 years of passion, dedication and commitment. For me, it was so special to see our children enjoying themselves, spellbound by the animals or just kicking back with some lawn games. The strength of the community between us all, working for better outcomes for young people is something I am really proud of, and proud to continue since our founders Carole and Denise (or Mum!) retired. Both remain incredibly proud of the work we and you continue to be Outstanding at!

I’m equally proud of some of the opportunities we’ve been able to offer our children and young people this year. At the start of the summer, we took some of our young people away to the Isle of Wight, to the UK Sailing Academy no less, where they experienced new activities and developed new skills. I know that Vicky and the team were very tired on their return, but they were also lifted and encouraged by the enthusiasm with which our children grasped this opportunity. Off the back of this experience, Affinity and the Local Authority sponsored a young person to complete their 3-month long Water sports Instructor’s course, which I’m very proud to say, they have successfully completed this month! A huge congratulations to all those who made it happen, and to C for sticking with it and making a real go of it – this is what we love doing and what Affinity is all about.

We also saw a range of activities enjoyed through our summer Pot of Gold scheme. This year, in recognition of the increased cost of activities, we gave every child in the household £120 to spend on an activity of their choice. There were days at theme parks, summer camps, paddling pools, sports and dance lessons, water sports and new bikes. The list goes on! We know that carers and children alike really value this scheme, and we were delighted to see the range of activities it led to this year.

And of course, we all got together for our annual foster carer’s conference. This is always a great event where there is such a strong sense of community, where we can really celebrate you, our carers. This year the Great Gatsby theme certainly went down well, and it was wonderful to see you all let your hair down and have some good old fashioned, very well-deserved fun, whether dancing in your outfits or in your pyjamas!

As well as the high-profile activities, behind the scenes there is always so much going on. We’ve continued to run a range of training on all manner of topics, and we’ve had some really positive feedback from you. We’re always keen to hear from you if you feel there is an area of training you’d like to look at so do let us know if there’s something you’re interested in. We’ve run carer support groups and foster carer forums.

Our newly named Children’s Engagement Team (previously named our Participation and Support team) has worked tirelessly with our children and young people and fostering families to offer amazing events, support and mentoring, and through them we have also captured the views of over 80 of our young people in our first comprehensive young person’s questionnaire. Our social work team have continued to work with you, support you, advocate for you and the children and help keep everyone safe and well. They have been incredibly dedicated over the year, as has everyone in Affinity: the Business Support team (who you all know so well from phoning into the office) keep us running like clockwork; our placements team who have been super busy and successful in providing the right matches for you; Gayle making sure you all get paid on time (we know how important that is!); the Management team who have had so many plates spinning, particularly this year, and have been so committed to keeping Affinity Outstanding, to our new Marketing and Recruitment team who are running hard to develop strategies to recruit more amazing carers like you.

So, 2023 was maybe not so bad after all. As we reflect on these high points and begin to look forward, I personally am excited about what 2024 has in store for you, for our children and for Affinity.

I wish you, the children and your family and friends a very Merry Christmas and a healthy and happy new year.

Best wishes

Andy