The gap between the numbers of children needing foster care and the number of foster families available has widened – and Christians are being challenged to step up to the need.
Home for Good, a Christian charity that finds homes for children within churches in the UK, said the numbers of children entering the care system has increased 30% since austerity was introduced in 2010.
It said more than 100,000 children are currently in care across the UK, with more than 38,000 entering the care system for the first time every year. A quarter of them are 16 or older.