THERE are about 57 foster carers in Redditch but the county council's fostering team desperately need another 10.

Following initial inquiries into fostering, residents will receive an information pack and a reply slip.

After the submission of the slip, the fostering team can discuss it further.

Residents who are still showing interest at this stage will receive an informal home visit from a social worker and will then be invited to a fostering preparation course, which gives an overview of what it is like to foster.

The course runs for eight sessions over four weeks, generally in the evenings.

Another home visit will then take place to see what potential fosterers thought of the course.

They will then be allocated a fostering social worker who will take them through the assessment to look at the skills needed for fostering. It also looks at the impact fostering will have on lifestyle and family.

The completed assessment report is then submitted to a fostering panel, which makes recommendations to the fostering service on applicants.

Anyone who would like more details can call the fostering team's freephone number on 0800 028 2158.