Kit Davies talks to two grocers who opened their hearts and their homes to children in need of a loving family Is the grocery trade, whether corner shop or multiple, a good fit with the demands of foster caring? The National Foster Care Association would like to think so. It has the trade, among others, in its sights for its £2m Fostering Network campaign, designed to recruit 7,000 extra foster carers this year. Are employees and their spouses in the grocery trade currently doing their bit? Well, not really, if you consider that the National Foster Care Association have few foster carers on their books working in food retailing, while nearly 40,000 children and young people live with foster families at any one time. A pity, because dealing with people and their idiosyncrasies is at the heart of selling to the public. Foster caring should present few challenges to people already used to coping with constant niggling demands, mounds of paperwork and legislation, and versed in the art of making people feel welcome, says the NFCA. Peter Field, 45, who runs the beers, wines and spirits department at Sainsbury's Courthouse Green store in Coventry, is obviously enjoying his time as a foster carer. He agrees that grocery provides a good background for the job. "You're already used to dealing with all sorts of people from all walks of life," he says. Field and his wife Sue have been fostering for three years, and clearly like a busy household, for as well as having their own children, a 15 year old girl and boys of 13 and 12, they are looking after girls, sisters, aged seven and five. The couple began gently, providing respite care. They took in an autistic child at weekends to give mum a break, and found they thoroughly enjoyed it ­ so much so that they have continued helping out with this boy to date. They have since given respite care for six or seven children and taken care of three emergency placements. "We became very attached to some of the children. It was a wrench when they moved on, but you do get used to it. What was particularly rewarding with one girl was that we could see a change in her while she was with us." Sainsbury has supported his fostering. "Getting time off for things such as taking children for a medical check-up is never a problem. They've been very considerate." Michael Holmes, 51, who sells fresh produce in Sowerby Bridge near Halifax, and his wife have cared for a grand total of 21 children over the past 10 years, one of whom they decided to adopt. Holmes is the first to admit that fostering is hard work and "time consuming ­ and no, I wouldn't say grocery is particularly conducive to it ­ but all the children like food!" Holmes was a warrant officer in the Yorkshire Regiment when he and May first entertained the idea of fostering. "We said to ourselves, we aren't doing 'owt this Christmas, and it seemed the reasonable thing to do. "I put a phone call in to the social services and they just said no. They were pretty abrupt really. But this aroused our curiosity, and we decided to follow it up." The couple had a long process to go through before they could take in their first child. "We had to have referees, checks, visits from the social services. We had to attend meetings and courses. It was a five to six month job." Michael and May have cared primarily for smaller children, and currently have two girls, one of eight and one of nine, whom they will be looking after right up to adulthood, as well as a baby boy. They also adopted a child they had fostered and she is now 13. It is a busy family, with their natural daughter and granddaughter also living with them, and most of the actual day-to-day care falls to May, with Michael up at 4am each day. He clearly relishes the big extended family around him. "My wife thinks it is a great thing to do," says Holmes, "Mind you, babies are particularly demanding. He says fostering two or more children at a time is easier than one its own. "Two will go off and play together, one alone will demand more attention. "We do miss them when they move on, although you do prepare yourself for that. Sometimes they keep in touch and it's great to visit and see them looked after by their adopters or back with their proper parents." Fostering Network co-ordinator Steve Annett says the campaign is looking for carers from all varieties of background. The types of care needed range from preparation for adoption, emergency and short-term through to long-term. And the children in need can be babies, sibling groups, or a youngster on remand. A prospective carer can expect a six-month wait from returning the expression of interest form to Fostering Network to when they are approved. The cost is picked up by the local authority ­ no carer should ever be out of pocket, says the NFCA. Anyone interested in fostering should contact Fostering Network at PO Box 5050, Annesley, Nottingham, NG15 ODL, or visit www.fosteringnetwork.co.uk. {{FEATURES }}