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Talented young people took to the stage last Thursday night (15 May) to showcase their skills at a special Foster Care Fortnight (12 – 25 May 2025) celebration for Nottinghamshire’s fostering families and fostered children and young people.

Fostering's Got Talent, organised annually by Nottinghamshire County Council, saw the local fostering community come together at West Notts College’s Create Theatre in Mansfield to celebrate the young people’s talents as well as to meet and socialise with fellow foster caring families.

This year’s event showcased skills including dancing and singing. The winner was selected by audience votes. The 10-year-old wowed the audience singing ‘Somewhere Only We Know’. The talented youngster came third at least year’s event, so it was extra-special for them to come back and win overall this year. The second-place act was a 9-year-old dancer, and in third place a 12-year-old member of Care To Dance performing a solo dance piece.

The winner received tickets to the live semi-final of popular ITV show Britain’s Got Talent in London, courtesy of Fremantle and Thames TV. Runners up received Love2Shop vouchers and certificates for their participation.

The annual talent contest is one of the many events organised by the council’s fostering team throughout the year to bring foster carer families together. It takes place as part of Foster Care Fortnight, an annual nationwide campaign led by The Fostering Network. The campaign raises awareness of fostering and encourages more people to apply to become foster carers.

This year’s Foster Care Fortnight theme, ‘the power of relationships,’ aims to showcase the many connections made through fostering. Events like Fostering’s Got Talent are just one of the ways that the local fostering community in Nottinghamshire comes together to celebrate the life-changing benefits of fostering.

Foster carers shared their praise of the event, saying, “best one yet! I don’t know how you all do it.” Another foster carer added, “another amazing success – weren’t they all talented!"

This year’s event also included a special opening performance by Care To Dance, featuring care-experienced young people. Members of Bloco Transcultural, along with some of the council staff, performed a drum act, and two members of the fostering team showcased their own skills with musical performances.

Colin Pettigrew, Executive Director for Children and Families, attended the event to show support for the fostering community across the county.

He said: “Foster Care Fortnight is an important time to come together and celebrate the foster carers and fostering families in Nottinghamshire. It was brilliant to see so many young people displaying their talents in front of an audience at the event. They can all be proud of putting on a fantastic show. Congratulations to all the young people – and grown-ups! – who took to the stage as part of this community celebration.

“Foster carers play an important role supporting some of our county’s most vulnerable children and young people. Events like this show how much young people can thrive with care and the encouragement to follow their interests and passions.

“Fostering’s Got Talent is one of many events our fostering team run throughout the year where our foster families can connect and socialise. Our foster carers always tell us how important the support they receive from their peers is, and our teams work hard to ensure that foster carers have lots of opportunities to meet with each other and discuss their experiences.

“We always need more people to join our fostering community and help care for our county’s children and young people. When you foster with Nottinghamshire County Council, we provide comprehensive training, great benefits and extensive support. The fostering community in Nottinghamshire really is something special.”

Foster carers are vital to ensure that every child and young person can thrive in a safe, loving, family home environment. Foster carers from all backgrounds are welcomed and invited to find out more by getting in touch with Foster For East Midlands. Call 03033 132 950 or visit fosterforeastmidlands.org.uk to learn more.

Foster For East Midlands hosts regular information events, both online and in person, where anyone can find out more about what being a foster carer is really like. The next online event will be on Wednesday 4 June, 6:30pm to 7:30pm via Zoom. Find details or register for upcoming events at fosterforeastmidlands.org.uk/events.