What's wrong with this picture?


I saw this poster recently, in fact there were quite a few of them, dotted around, near the exits of our local shopping mall.

I had to do a double-take, wondering if I'd really seen what I thought I had.

Just in case you can't quite work it out, the poster asks first if a person has a spare room, then informs that this agency gives £380 per child per week. It's in the smaller print that we learn that the agency is a care and foster agency.

Isn't the message here a bit off key? When did we, as a community, start seeing foster care primarily as a financial issue? Isn't it odd that the recruitment doesn't mention a caring attitude to children, or a desire to help?

Is foster care in our capital city just a business transaction?

Isn't this hugely offensive, or am I over-reacting?

I'm sure that the agency would do proper training and checking of suitability, but it's just mad that the basis of the appeal for more foster carers is that it's a money-spinner. Are cared-for kids just a means to a healthier bank balance for some?

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