Fostering advice on hand at Kirklees event

A pair of Kirklees twins have been talking up the positives of fostering, ahead of a drop-in event for potential families in the region.
Pippa Richardson, mum Lynn and sister Alex. The family have fostered 47 children in total.Pippa Richardson, mum Lynn and sister Alex. The family have fostered 47 children in total.
Pippa Richardson, mum Lynn and sister Alex. The family have fostered 47 children in total.

Twin sisters Alex and Pippa Richardson, 19, grew up surrounded by foster children. Their parents Lynn and John began fostering when the girls were aged eight and in that time, they have welcomed 47 children of varying ages and ability levels into their home.

But whilst some might wonder what impact fostering as a family might have on their own children, Alex and Pippa, who are both now studying at university, maintain it has helped shape who they are today.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Alex, now in her second year at the University of York, said: “Particularly in the early days Pippa and I would look forward to having new children come to stay.

“For us it was about having another person to play with and I remember we’d always wait excitedly by the kitchen window in anticipation of their arrival. Being part of a foster family really opened my eyes to a diverse world.”

Pippa, a student at the University of Bristol, said: “My parents would always make time for us no matter who was staying with us. Mum would also run everything past us, as we’d get a say in who came to stay.”

As well as the lasting legacy on their future careers, both Alex and Pippa still keep in touch with some of their foster siblings and have been able to discover first-hand the difference it can make.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Kirklees Council is hoping other families will follow suit. It is hosting a drop-in information evening on fostering at at Huddersfield’s John Smith’s Stadium on Tuesday, October 9.

For more, visit kirklees.gov.uk/fostering.