Blue Sky Fostering Reviews 14

I was previously with a different agency for 6 years who I thought were great. It was only when I transferred to Blue Sky that I realised how inadequate my previous agency were.

I have now been with Blue Sky since 2016 and wouldn't change.

It's a challenging role, it has many ups and downs and at times you are pulling your hair out, however, I've had a lot of support from Blue Sky throughout my 9yrs with them.

Blue Sky are always at the end of the phone. And yes, they do finish at 5pm, go home and switch off but they have 24hr support and when you choose to be a foster carer you choose the life that goes with it.... 24/7, reporting what you do with the child in your care, not getting a day off when you want but the rewards make up for all that. To have a traumatised child join your family and watch them flourish, over come their fears and become a confident, strong, bright young person makes all the hard work worth it.

Once you attend the Skills to Foster training you will see that Blue Sky care. Their matching process is thorough and they make every effort to get it right and match you and your family with the right child.

I would recommend Blue Sky if you are considering life as a foster carer. After 9yrs I'm still here !!

Are you considering becoming a Foster Carer:

For my husband and I, our genuine goal has always been to support children. Meeting 2 severely neglected children 17 years ago left a profound impact on our hearts.

We knew that we could have gone down the adoption pathway, and researched into adoption agencies, but we already have our own children, which is why we don't adopt more. Additionally, not every child desires adoption; so many children need a safe environment that allows them to maintain or rebuild healthy relationships with their families. This provides their parents with the opportunity to make necessary changes and become the parents their children need them to be.
Therefore, we focus on supporting these families and creating a secure space for children in need whenever possible. This involves assisting them in nurturing better relationships with their families while they receive vital support in a safe environment.

Some children may never return home if their parents are unable to make the required changes. Our child in care has expressed two powerful thoughts: "Care is for a reason" and "A fresh start is a good start." She has also thanked us for being the parents she always needed.

I am pleased to share that our child is thriving, currently attending school, and aiming to pass all her GCSEs! Transforming a young person's life brings an immense sense of purpose!

Many foster carers are driven by the belief that life is about seizing opportunities and living it to the fullest. They want to help children experience those chances. Every foster carer I’ve met genuinely prioritises the child's best interests and strives to provide a better life for those they care for.

For me, fostering isn't just a job since I run my own business; however, I have great respect for those who dedicate themselves to it full-time. Many individuals embrace this crucial role because these children need support, and fostering is one of the most fulfilling jobs one can pursue.

I find it sad that fostering is often viewed negatively as a profession. People choose teaching or caring as a career, yet fostering demands that you be both a teacher and a caregiver around the clock. We need more compassionate, kind-hearted individuals who are willing to embrace fostering as a job and truly love what they do!

If you feel you have the qualities above, a generous heart, and an extra room, reach out to Blue Sky. Over the past 17 years, we've gone to go through this process with various agencies 4 times. We met Blue Sky at an armed forces event and were immediately impressed by their supportive network, including monthly meet-ups, family events, and career opportunities. It might have took us 17 years but Blue Sky finally helped us feel confident that we were ready to take the step to help children and our experience with them has certainly met our expectations. Blue Sky guides you through every step and we have also gained lofelong friendships. One of the most rewarding aspects is seeing children in care form close bonds through team-building activities, connecting with others who understand their experiences.
I'm deeply passionate about our journey. With around 155 referrals each day to Blue Sky and only five available families, I hope more families will open their homes to children in need. It will be one of the most rewarding experiences you will ever do your life.

I’ve been with Bluesky fostering for 7.5 years. It’s never going to be easy doing what we do. There will always be ups and downs. Referals won’t always be 100% accurate, staff will change, placements will break down.
It is how the agency support you when this happens. Placements work closely with you to get the information you need about the young people, unfortunately local authorities don’t always know these children.
Staff change over is the same in all businesses, when we have a change we are supported by area managers to get the right social worker to work alongside us.
I’ve recently had a placement breakdown with one of my young people, she had been with me 7 years. I was never made to feel I had done something wrong or needed to change how I care for our children. Other carers stepped in to support until another carer could be found to take on the young lady. Social workers worked with me to make me feel supported.
As for the other young person who lives with me, he has also been supported through his sister moving on.
These negatives are the same negatives you will get with every agency.
Now the good bits…
I love what I do, with the carers who have become close friends, with staff we know and can work alongside.
We have events every school holiday where we can all get together include birth families. As carers we have events for just us when the young people are at school, we are involved in supporting new carers before during and after assessment.
I wouldn’t change a thing, thank you Bluesky for letting me have the most amazing ‘job’ .

We have been with blue sky since June 2023(panel)
We had looked at fostering with the LA and other fostering agencies but Bluesky just stood out from the rest.
Our main point was that our children were involved throughout the journey and they have been. Blue sky have a family ethos and it shows. My children are included in all events, including Easter, Christmas and their birthdays. They are celebrated just as much as the children in our care.
We have had an amazing experience so far with them, whenever we have had any problems someone from the team have been on hand to help and support us. We have an amazing supervising social worker who always gets back to us. But also all those in the background have supported us at some point so we never feel alone.
They offer lots of courses to keep us updated on changes that occur, they offer support groups with other carers and many have become firm friends.
Blue sky offer such a variety of family days and carers days. It’s like one big family

I have been with Blue Sky since June 2022 I was recommended by a friend to join the company and WOW, they have been amazing. The whole process from starting until I went to panel was fantastic. The Blue Sky family have made me very welcome; the support they offer is amazing. I found the process very scary but I was given a buddy who helped me with all the paper work and training which was a godsend as its not easy. The end goal was worth all of it. I have an amazing 14 year old girl, who has settled into our family.I have 3 sons of my own, who have all been welcomed by Blue Sky.

Blue Sky do such wonderful events for our foster child and birth children; we are all like one big family.
I feel very lucky to be able to work along side this agency. Sometimes things can be really hard how ever, I feel that I can call the office and someone will always offer help or find someone who can help.

We are now one very happy family of 5 and things are going very well. Thank you Blue sky as you have helped me make my dreams come true.

Forever grateful

Vikki Smith Devon and Cornwall Hub

Having read some of the recent reviews for Bluesky, I felt compelled to write my own.

Firstly, I can sympathise with those who have found the process of fostering difficult, especially where allegations are made. It is not a pleasant situation to find yourself in and it is possible to feel that the process is fully on the side of the child. It is not. Great lengths are taken to moderate. However, in the final analysis, it must be the child who is protected. This is not just in the case of foster carers, but teachers, nurses, youth workers. Anyone who works with children are open to scrutiny. It is the name of the game. Fostering is a 24-hour career. As some reviews have pointed out, there are few career entitlements. Those are the downsides and I personally would prefer better rights. But if you are going to foster, believe me having made this part of my life for 14 years, you could not be in safer, more caring hands than those of the Bluesky staff. If there is a school situation, a medical situation, a police situation, infact any social situation you find yourself having to deal with, and that includes Local Authority queries, they are there by your side. There are many titles within the agency, administration department, placement teams, social workers, and training teams , all there to aid you in any given situation. I cannot emphasise enough how caring and dedicated the staff are. How far they will go to support you in your training, matching you and your family with the children in their care. They are initially your social worker, but remember, the children in their care are vulnerable, many requiring support from psychologists, and special needs. They protect these children and you. I have watched young children who have had the very worst of starts in life grow in confidence, blossom in health and become lifelong family members, who make all the ups and down so worthwhile. We are carers to protect and give love and security to neglected children. Bluesky has supported us as a family throughout. From extra school lessons, driving tests to acquiring passports, their support has been enormous.

For added support, there are hubs where you can meet and socialise with other carers and the children in their care. Bluesky maintains a family approach where all are welcome.

Lynne Newhall.

We have been with Blue Sky since November '24 which is when we passed through our panel for approval as foster carers. Blue Sky were recommended to us in a chance meeting with another couple of their carer's.

From the initial point of contact through to approval we had lots of support with the process and felt like the agency was very transparent with their expectations and in managing our expectations.

Once approved we started receiving referrals and after a rocky start, where we received lots of support from multiple people within the agency, we now have a young person with us who is settling well into our family life and is thriving.

The process isn't easy, the actual reality isn't easy, but it is something you just want to do and nothing else is quite like it.

Blue Sky are quick to acknowledge when things haven't gone quite right and have always sought to remedy things at their earliest opportunity. Likewise they are quick to recognise when things have gone well, and I've never "worked" with / for an organisation that values it's members as much as they do.

If you've ever thought about fostering, do it, and do it with Blue Sky.

Highly recommend this fostering agency. They are a great team and really do provide dedicated and tireless support to their foster carers and the young people in their care.

I would not recommend Blue Sky Fostering to anyone wishing to foster challenging and vulnerable children, due to the appalling experience I have had with their allegations process. I have had to endure the most horrific and vindictive backlash, due to the LA and Blue Sky's own practices. I have discovered that Blue Sky decided to de-registered me and refer me to DBS, BEFORE the so called 'independent investigation process' had even begun! They made me go through the most horrendous process of hours and hours of collating information and trying to respond to false claims, unpleasant visits from the Blue Sky 'investigator', and two review panel interviews, knowing all along that the whole process was pointless and that they were only doing it to look like they were following the correct procedures. (The review panel recommendations not to de-register us were of course ignored by Blue Sky Fostering). For anyone who doesn't know about this process, it is obviously a corrupt system. Since foster carers have no employment rights, it also appears we have no human rights either! And, if you think it won't happen to you, think again - after years of successful foster caring with an exemplary record, neither did I.

Blue Sky Fostering Failed to Support Us.
We believe that Blue Sky failed in their duty of care toward us, and in our experience, they prioritized their commercial relationship with the Local Authority over supporting us. Rather than defending us and the actions we undertook at the request of the Local Authority, they accused us of failings that, as a court found, were actually due to the Local Authority not fulfilling their responsibilities.
The Local Authority’s Social Work Manager confirmed that the Local Authority received extensive criticism but made no mention of any directed at us. Initially, we believed we were supporting Blue Sky against these allegations during what was presented to us as a ‘friendly chat.’ However, it later appeared that it was Blue Sky itself advancing the allegations against us, seemingly in response to stinging criticism directed at the Local Authority – and by extension, Blue Sky – during a court hearing regarding a young person’s care.
Be aware that so-called ‘chats’ can function as fishing expeditions, designed to extract any snippet of information that can be used against you. If you are invited to an informal ‘chat’ about allegations, we strongly recommend having formal representation present.
Be cautious about challenging them. We learned they are highly averse to criticism and will double down on weaponizing even the smallest comment or remark, regardless of how long ago it was made. For example, describing a young person as ‘challenging’ might later be cited as evidence that you were ‘not managing the young person properly.’ Similarly, mentioning that you bought a small treat for a child because they had spent their pocket money could be used against you as proof that you failed to teach them financial responsibility.
When confronted with opportunities to uncover the truth or address factual inaccuracies, Blue Sky often ignores them, preferring to uphold the negative narrative they have already committed to. While they expect foster carers to acknowledge and address their perceived weaknesses, Blue Sky appears unwilling to confront its own deficiencies, instead deflecting blame onto carers.
In our case, the investigator assigned to our case was not independent of Blue Sky. Instead, they came from senior management and worked closely with the business’s commercial interests. If you are fortunate, the investigator might have some social work experience, though likely not recent. They will repeatedly remind you that they are the professionals – not you – despite the fact that you live with and care for these young people day and night, sometimes for years. According to them, your opinions do not carry professional weight.
Just before these allegations arose, we foolishly mentioned that we were considering changing agencies. This was due to having an additional spare room that could provide a home for a young person, coupled with Blue Sky’s apparent inability to arrange a second placement. This disclosure seemed to trigger an avalanche of allegations against us. Subsequently, on speaking to many other carers they too have experienced the same treatment, when they have talked about changing agencies.
In our experience, Blue Sky prioritizes its own reputation as well as its commercial relationship with the Local Authority above the well-being and reputation of foster carers – their attitude is that foster carers are expendable. They ignore facts in favour of using their opinions as evidence, twist reality, and rely on hearsay as proof.
We believed we could provide a safe and loving environment for young people in need of a home for many years to come. However, because Blue Sky appears to have prioritised their own interests over the well-being and care of their most important assets – foster carers – we are no longer able to continue fostering and joined the thousands of Foster Carers (as reported by The Fostering Network organisation in Nov 2024) who have been forced to leave fostering due to lack of support from their fostering service, and lack of respect for their role.

Not to be trusted to give any support when things go wrong with a placement. Blue Sky will 100% prioritise their relationship with the LA over you and the young person in your care and they will make sure you cannot work again for anyone else. Be VERY careful about discussing the possibility of moving elsewhere. If you are unfortunate enough to be subjected to an allegation, they will ignore the recommendations of review panels and the IRO and deregister you anyway as, like most agencies, they are autonomous and don’t care about individual foster carers. After 15 years of successful fostering, this appalling experience with Blue Sky means we would never recommend them to anyone.

The worst fostering agency I have ever come across.

We received no support, the staff turnover is shocking and they kept getting our pay wrong and deducting money from us when we needed it most.

They left me at a hospital abandoned for multiple days with a child who wasn't even in my care because it was Easter and they all wanted a break, they even argued paying for my parking.

This is absolutely a company based around filling their own pockets who don't have a care in the world for the children they place. SHAME ON THEM.

As an employer these people have inspired my daughter, she is so happy at work, since working here she comes home stressfree (that work life balance we all dream of) and continues her home life like she hasn't even been to work, with a spring in her step she if off to the gym, out walking to get her steps in, cooking or socialing.
Either way Blue Sky's clearly look after their staff...
I'm proud of her enthusiasm and commitment.
She shares her achievements/awards from her employer,
Thankyou for valuing your staff and treating them so well.

This company is very great! I really love this and I go out on trips with my social workers. 200/10