Foster care in popular culture

 Last year’s Christmas ad from John Lewis got us all talking about foster care. The story of an ordinary family getting ready to welcome a child into their home struck a chord with millions of viewers. There are prospective foster carers going through the application process right now, having picked up the phone to their local council after watching the TV ad. 

The media plays a critical role in raising awareness about fostering. TV, news and film often provide viewers with their first insight into the care system, if they have not been exposed to fostering through family and friends. A powerful documentary or compelling TV drama can motivate people to find out more and even consider whether they could support a young person in need of a safe and loving home. 

Here are some films, TV series and documentaries that have started conversations, sparked interests and inspired others to become foster carers.

John Lewis Christmas advert

Watch the Christmas commercial that got the nation talking about foster care. This simple but moving short film raised awareness of the challenges facing children in care and the need for more foster families.

Split Up in Care: Life Without Siblings

Ashley John-Baptiste is a BBC reporter who grew up in foster care believing that he was an only child. In his mid-20s he received a life-changing message from a man telling him that he was his brother. This BBC Three documentary tells Ashley’s story.

Instant Family

Young people in foster care often start by being determined to hate this film but almost always ask to watch it again…and again. This 2018 comedy-drama centres on husband-and-wife Pete and Ellie Wagner, confronted with a tough choice when it emerges that the girl they want to adopt comes with two younger siblings. 

Jimmy Akingbola: Handle with Care

The acclaimed actor and presenter tells his own story and reveals the truth about growing up in the care system in England in this deeply personal film. 

The Quiet Girl

This is a relatively new film, released in 2022. Based on Foster, a novella by Claire Keegan, and set in rural Ireland, it tells the story of a girl sent to live with foster parents on a farm, while her mother gives birth. She has no notion of when she will return home. In the strangers' house she finds affection she has not known before, and blossoms in their care. 

The Ride

This film tells the true-life story of BMX pro John Buultjens. Raised by a white supremacist family, John spent most of his youth in a juvenile detention centre. He is introduced to a foster family, only to discover his new father is black. But together they work things through to overcome his racism and form a bond that inspires him to BMX success. 

This is Us

This family drama follows the lives of the Pearson's. Jack and Rebecca Pearson have twins Kevin and Kate, and an adopted son Randall. In Season Two, the now adult Randall and his wife Beth foster a 12-year-old girl named Deja, whose mother in in prison. Watch it here.  

The Real Mo Farah

In 2022 the Olympic champion Sir Mo Farah shocked the world by revealing the truth about his journey from Somaliland as a child, the trauma of growing up separated from his birth family and that Mo Farah was not his real name. 

From Cradle to Care

This radio documentary by Nigel Richardson seeks to explain the increase in the number of newborn babies taken into care and why there are differences across the UK.  

Heartland

This long-running Netflix series follows the lives of the Bartlett family on a ranch in Alberta. Along the way, the Bartletts welcome children from other families into their home and become foster parents. The many challenges of living in care and being estranged from parents are a big part of the storyline. The stories are told sensitively and the scenery is stunning. 

Curious about fostering? 

If you are curious about fostering and keen to learn more about what it is really like to protect and care for those who are unable to live with their own families, why not read more about what it’s really like to foster by filling in the form below?