‘Inspiring’ foster carer from Northern Ireland wins prestigious Fostering Excellence Award

Johnjoe Largey, who fosters with the Northern Health and Social Care Trust, was awarded The Fostering Network award for foster carers, sponsored by The Mortgage Brain, at the awards ceremony in Birmingham.

Johnjoe, who received four nominations, currently cares for two 12-year-old boys on a long-term basis, providing them with attention, consistency and love which has enabled them to thrive and begin to achieve their potential.

Alongside this, Johnjoe – from the Antrim area – looks after babies on a short-term basis, caring for them until they are ready to move on to a more permanent home.

He also supports the Northern Health and Social Care Trust with foster carer training and recruitment and was described in his nomination from a retired social work senior manager as ‘simply inspiring’.

Johnjoe’s partner Luke, who was one of the nominators, said: “Johnjoe is one of the most inspiring people I have ever met. His compassion is simply unmatched when it comes to looking after young people.

"He has a natural way of connecting with young people and instantly showing them compassion and acceptance. He always goes above and beyond for his foster children and I can confidently say that he exceeds every element of his role.

"His children look up to him so incredibly fondly and would refer to him as their own family.”

The annual Fostering Excellence Awards are the UK’s most prestigious foster care awards, celebrating outstanding achievements in fostering and recognise those who make exceptional contributions to foster care every day.

The award ceremony took place at Birmingham Repertory Theatre, hosted by broadcaster, TV presenter and inspirational speaker Ashley John Baptiste, who grew up in care himself.

Chief executive of The Fostering Network Sarah Thomas said: ‘This year marks my first Fostering Excellence Awards as CEO and I am over the moon to be able to celebrate the outstanding work of people within our fostering communities in this way.

“It’s been such a joy to read everyone’s stories and hear about exceptional people who go above and beyond to support others. It’s an honour to be able to celebrate these incredible achievements with our annual awards as well as highlight the vital role fostering is playing to those outside the fostering community.

"The fostering community is truly a special one and all our winners, and everyone else involved in fostering in the UK should be incredibly proud of their contributions to foster care.

"With more than 7,000 fostering families needed in the UK, it’s vital that we get more exceptional foster carers on board to provide stable homes for children and young people.”