In March of 2022, there were 43,905 fostering households in the UK (Ofsted report). This same report showed that there were 57,540 children living with foster families. These numbers present the potential for thousands of children – whether the foster children themselves or the children of the families they live with. Thousands more will have left care through adoption, but still hold their experiences of care and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) within their young minds. Unfortunately, in a literary market inundated by books featuring nuclear families who experience little to none of the experiences many children in care have lived through, there emerges a gap in representation.
For the child in foster care, there will be a need to see oneself represented in the stories and books around them. To see themselves and to see that they are seen – to have it placed in literal black and white in front of them that they are not alone in their situation.
For the sibling of the adopted or fostered child, there will be a need to understand – understanding which can be greatly assisted by the presence of books which provide examples of what foster care can look like or of the experiences a child in care may have been through before entering the care system.
For the parent or guardian of the child in care, there is a twofold need for representative literature – firstly, to ensure that the child they have promised to care for has the ability to see themselves represented in literature, providing them with reassurance that they are not alone and additionally the potential to gain literary role models and learn more about their own situation and feelings. Secondly, it may also help the adult to understand the child to read these books themselves, gaining understanding of the reactions or feelings this young person may be experiencing.
With this in mind, the significance of representative literature should not be overlooked – and here are five books which represent elements of the care system, whether explicitly as a significant element of the narrative or so quietly that you might only notice the themes when actively looking for them.
ANNE PHOTO
Beginning with a children’s classic,