The government today published a new strategy for adoption services across England.

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The government today published the national strategy for autistic children, young people and adults - 2021 to 2026.

Read it online

It seems fitting this month, to alert you all to the new pop-up Virgin Radio station, Pride UK. The lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT+) station broadcasts a mixture of music and LGBT+ relevant programmes. It'll run right over the summer, from now until late September. It airs pieces often close to us. It'll discuss trans-equality, gay adoption, and being bisexual in 2021. There's content for our wider friendship network too. The station aims to help families understand issues affecting LGBT+ people.

The diverse programming includes music, documentaries and interviews. It was developed to raise awareness and reduce social inequality. LBGT+ hosts and guests will create on-air spaces to discuss issues faced by LGBT+ people.

The station's collaborating with Pride events right across the UK. Programmes will cover live events where possible, and virtual events too. This helps us all to support and enjoy these events. Childcare responsibilities or covid restrictions won't be a barrier to the station.

There are lots of ways you can listen in:

· You can listen online 

· You can listen on the Virgin Radio App, which is free to download

· You can ask Alexa or Google Home device to 'play Virgin Radio Pride UK'

There's also permanent LGBT+ stations you can check out, like Gaydio UK. They play lots of music and also have podcasts. These podcasts cover topics including fostering and an interview with same-sex adopters. Yvonne and Natalia discuss their adoption approval and matching process as they await the arrival of their children.

· You can listen to the station live at gaydio.co.uk

· You can catch up on its podcasting online 

We all know how important self-care is. It can be to difficult achieve at times. ‘Attending’ a Pride event - listening to an article -can form part of your self-care for the day. Allow yourself five minutes out of your busy day to listen, laugh, and relax.

However you and your family choose to celebrate, have a happy Pride month.

The Fostering Network wants the whole fostering community, from foster carers to fostering services and care experienced children and young people, from fundraisers to campaigners, and everyone in between who cares about the lives of children in care to step up and tell the world #WhyWeCare.

Charity Diagrama is delighted to be part of Foster Care Fortnight. It is encouraging people who may like to explore the idea of fostering to think about contacting them to find out more about this rewarding career.

Margaret Gardiner, Fostering and Adoption Team Manager, Diagrama, said:

'One of the side effects of the pandemic is that Diagrama is receiving more referrals than ever for children needing safe and secure placements. We need to increase the number of children we can support and are looking to train new foster carers across London and the south east to help with this demand. If you are interested in finding out if fostering might be the right career choice for you, please do contact us or sign up for an online information event.'

Find out if fostering might be the career for you, at a Diagrama online information event.

‘I’m not eating THAT!’

Sound familiar?

On 20 April our LGBT+ adopter and foster carer members met to talk and share ideas about food, their children and fussy eating.

Here are their top tips, courtesy of Riley and Ric from our membership team:

Does your child refuse to eat?

1. Try to chill out about it. They won't starve themselves, so don't worry too much.

2. Ask yourself questions to help you consider the reasons why they refuse to eat. Is it about control? Is it a result of early trauma? How were they weaned? Were they neglected? Was food a source of security, or was it risky to consume?

3. Hide fruit and vegetables in cake! Various members said their children had learned to like certain foods by trying it first baked into a cake.

4. Write it down - keep a list of foods your child will eat. Hopefully you'll be able to watch it grow.

5. If something's working - keep doing it! Don't worry if it's different from what you expected or what your friends do with their kids.

Does your child take and hide food?

1. Do they eat everything they take? Or do they hide it without eating it? Some kids feel safer if they know there’s food in their room.

2. Make sure there’s food available that can help themselves to if they're hungry.

3. Keep calm when they tell you they've taken something or you find the evidence.

4. Cooking and shopping together can help kids feel more in control

5. Make food playful - can they catch a grape in their mouth? Can they guess the crisp flavour?

Does your child struggle with their behaviour at meal times?

1. Think about their emotional age, not their chronological age. Do they need to be fed? Do they play with their food like a baby or toddler?

2. If you're out and about, try having them sit on your lap instead of in their own seat.

3. Do what your child needs, not what you think you "should" make them do. Some children need to bounce on an exercise ball while they eat. Other children eat better if they have music playing during meals.

Looking for the latest statistics on adoption or fostering by LGBT+ people in the UK? If you're one of our Bronze, Silver, Gold or Orange members you can log in and check out each country's stats, below:

	England
	Scotland
	Wales
	Northern Ireland

Need to access the stats? You can create a free Bronze membership in a matter of minutes.

Diagrama is urging members of the LGBT community to considering becoming foster carers after a spike in demand

There's been a much publicised and dramatic surge in the need for safe and secure homes for children during the pandemic. The charity Diagrama is keen to hear from those who might want to consider a career in fostering.

Margaret Gardiner is a Fostering and Adoption Team Manager and a Foster Carer for Diagrama. She shares her personal insight into fostering in this film.

Children who need to be fostered come from a range of different backgrounds, cultures and ethnicities. Sometimes they are babies or infants. Often they are older children. Some will be on their own, but others will be part of a family group. Some will have special needs or disabilities; others will have less obvious needs.

Diagrama supports and empowers their foster carers to provide homes which enable children to feel safe, secure, attached and inspired – where they’re safe and can start to enjoy life again.

Find out how you could make a huge difference to a child’s life by becoming a foster carer with Diagrama by visiting its website. Or you can call the Diagrama team on 0800 802 1910

Alternatively, why not attend a Diagrama online fostering information event by registering via Eventbrite?

New Family Social’s census was taken between 21 -27 March. It asked the charity’s LGBT+ members at different stages of their adoption and fostering journey to anonymously share data including their identified sexual orientation, gender identity, geographical location and more.

The full report is accessible to our registered members at Bronze/Silver/Gold/Orange levels. Simply follow this link, log in and you’ll be redirected to it.

You can also quickly register for a free Bronze membership and access the report, our directory of agencies that provide dedicated support to LGBT+ adopters and foster carers and our information session finder tool.

Mothers' Day is coming up soon - 14 March -  in the UK. Now is a good time to think about how you - and your children's school/nursery - are going to handle it. 

Some schools and nurseries don't observe Mothers' or Fathers' Day at all. Instead, they celebrate family in other ways through the year. But most schools will mark both days with special activities. Planning ahead will give you time to decide what will work for your family and get the school on board. 

Cards and craft activities 

Making a card for Mum is a classic Mothers' Day classroom activity, which can upset kids. With a bit of planning though, everyone can feel included. Here's some options: 

• Make one card for both mums, or a card each 

• Make a card for a grandmother/aunt/other female relative 

• Make a card or two for both dads - even though it's mothers' day 

• Make a card for the foster carer(s) 

• Make a card for a special person of the child's choice 

• Make a card for/to think about the child's birth mum 

Check with school that they're not using pre-printed templates or very gendered crafts. You may decide that your child should skip this activity and have some special time out of class instead. 

Lesson plans about diverse families 

Many schools also hold lessons about family at this time of year. It's a great opportunity for them to show different kinds of families. There are some lesson plans available online which you can share with the school/nursery: 

"Love makes a family" display – make an art display featuring all the different families  

"Stella brings the family" – based on a popular book about a girl with two dads 

"All about my ____" questionnaire – a good replacement for the “All about my mum” activity 

"Who lives with you" – a simple house origami for the children to draw inside 

The Family Book circle time – a lesson plan for very young children based on Todd Parr’s popular book 

Campaign calls for LGBT+ people to consider these  routes to ‘Build Your Family’ 

Call to build on 2020 record of LGBT+ people adopting

LGBT+ people in the UK are urged to explore adoption and fostering as potential parenting routes in a campaign launching today (1 March). With 80,000 children in care in 2020 in England alone, LGBT+ Adoption & Fostering Week brings together agencies and LGBT+ possible applicants. The campaign is led by charity New Family Social, with support from some 70 agencies - representing more than 80 local authorities - across the country, from Belfast to Brighton. 

Build Your Family – the campaign theme – helps LGBT+ people view the adoption and fostering assessment process in easy stages. The campaign starts by showcasing LGBT+ parented adoptive and foster families. 

Tor Docherty, New Family Social Chief Executive said: ‘Record numbers of LGBT+ people now adopt or foster. The urgent need for more to do so hasn’t disappeared in the pandemic. The assessment process can still take place, despite lockdown and restrictions. If you’re LGBT+ it’s as good a time as any to find out how you can build your family through adoption or fostering.’ 

Since the campaign started in 2012, the number of same-sex couples adopting reached 1 in 6 in England in 2020, a record in both its proportion and total figure. In the same period 1 in 5 adoptions in Wales were to same-sex couples and 10 per cent of adopters in Northern Ireland were same-sex couples. 

LGBT+ people can find out more about their fostering and adoption options at newfamilysocial.org.uk/afw21/