What we can achieve by working together

Lola is currently going through an assessment to become foster carer. Having been through the process before, we spoke to her about her experiences and the big question: why foster care? What is your day job? I currently work as a senior social work assistant in a ‘Child in Care’ team in the West Midlands.  As part of...

The names of the foster children have been changed to protect their identity. ‘We are happy because they are happy,’ says Ashley who gave up his job to foster twin boys with autism. ‘We say this is our family and we feel really close to them. We call them our boys.’ The twins came into...

Foster carers are ordinary people doing extraordinary things… Opening your home and ultimately your heart to someone else’s child is not easy, but is a hugely rewarding experience. Celebrating this together is important, because our foster carers make it possible for Progress to contribute to improving the lives and outcomes of many children in our...

The memories of a day at Reading Festival still stay with Roma and hold a special place in her heart.  She had taken a teenager from Wellcroft House to the festival, and Roma could see the joy on her face as the young girl got out of her wheelchair and danced. ‘It was brilliant,’ she...

Bria joined Progress as a Student Fostering Social Worker and has become an important member of the team. We recently caught up with her to see how she’s been getting on in her new role and hear more about what attracted her to a career in Social Care. “My Mum and my Stepdad are both...

We want the young people in our care to have a great start to life and are supported as much as possible. We are continuously looking for areas where we can improve our services. This helps us achieve our goal of being the best we can be. This is where The Hub comes in; created...

Our charity champions, Anna and Jess made their way over to visit our charity of the year Acorns Children’s Hospice, to brainstorm fundraising ideas.   This year, Acorns are celebrating a huge milestone; their 30th anniversary. Part of their fundraising challenge is to encourage supporters to have a go at any or a selection of...

Our Hub services have been put together with the aim to help children and young adults with disabilities get the absolute most from life.   Between custom built accommodation, fun clubs and respite for all the family, we’ve been extremely successful in our goal. To get an inside look on the services, we caught up...

The feeling of buying something new never gets old!   Like most other teenage girls, my interests are fashion, makeup and music and regardless of any disability, the young girls supported by Progress are probably the same. I believe myself to be extremely lucky that I have no difficulties or disabilities but I can imagine...

We are incredibly proud of recieving GOLD in this year’s Investors in People (IIP) new assessing standards. Since our last IIP blog, we have been under assessment which has come to an end in November. Over the festive period, we have been waiting for the results. Here’s what our HR Manager, Emma Ruffinato had to say: “I am absolutely delighted that we achieved gold this year. I knew it was going to be challenging, but the way the team have feedback is brilliant. I think the staff should be really proud of the recognition for...