Foster Care Fortnight starts on Monday 16 May

The annual nationwide awareness campaign to promote fostering and encourage more people to become foster carers takes place from Monday 16 to Sunday 29 May 2011.

Since 2007 the number of children living with foster carers has risen by more than 6,000 when there was already a shortage of nearly 10,000 foster carers across the UK. This is putting the fostering system under immense pressure.

Foster Care Fortnight is run by the Fostering Network, although fostering services across the UK will be joining in and supporting the campaign.

The campaign hopes to highlight the urgent need for more foster carers and call on everyone from political leaders to the general public to get behind fostering and support children in care.

For more information, visit the Fostering Network's website.