A drive is being launched to find foster carers for Cheshire children who are in need of a home.

There are currently 25 children across the county in short-term foster care who are hoping to switch to long-term care.

A similar number are living in short-term care but want to move to homes closer to their family.

Cheshire County Council is setting up an extensive year-long advertising campaign in a bid to recruit more carers. The council has made its call during Foster Care Fortnight, and says it is hoping to improve on the disappointing results of a national campaign last year.

This year, the council says it is producing a more localised campaign and has launched a website, produced a compact disc and set up a special fostering hotlineand a website.

And council officials are in discussions with event organisers throughout the county so that they can host promotional stalls at various fairs over the year.

Leaflets were distributed to more than 80,000 Cheshire homes in last year's campaign. But county council fostering and adoption service manager Paul Mossman said there are only marginally fewer youngsters looking for new homes than there were at this time last year.

He said: "The campaign over the last year has not been as successful as we would have liked. A lot of people don't realise there is a shortage or carers, locally and nationally.

"Children need to be fostered for a huge variety of reasons. Parents may be unable to care because of illness, depression or perhaps drug or alcohol abuse.

"In such cases social workers will provide the support to help families work through their problems to make the home a safe place for a child to return to."

Two thirds of children fostered in Cheshire return home within six months. But for others, going home is not an option - and this is where long-term foster carers can step in to provide the kind of stable and secure family life that most children enjoy.

This year, the council was awarded Beacon Council status for its high quality foster care service and now stands as a model of best practice for other local authorities.

"Many people rule themselves out of being a foster carer because they have an idealised image of parenthood," said Mr Mossman. "But our 250 foster carers in Cheshire come from all walks of life bringing a wealth of experience to the role.

"And there's no question of anyone being thrown in at the deep-end - carers receive regular training and support. They also get an allowance to cover costs as well as a fee for any special skills or expertise they may have."

Social Services also co-ordinates respite care for families with a child with disabilities.

For more information call the hotline on 01244 602222, e-mail fostering@cheshire.gov.uk or visit its website.

Additional information courtesy of the Sentinel,Stoke