Tamsyn Radmall shares updates, encouragement and prayer points related to Home for Good’s work across Scotland.

As we write, we’re not long back from some time in Birmingham with the whole Home for Good staff team. It was very encouraging to be reminded that we are part of a team with a strong, shared vision and call to inspire and equip the Church to find homes for those that need them. It was also a real encouragement to see how the Scottish voice is being championed and supported across the whole team in every nation.

Resources for churches

It was exciting to see ‘A promise of hope’ – our 2023 Christmas campaign – used more widely across Scotland. It was a blessing to see churches engage with our material at a time of year where many have complex experiences and memories. The Christmas campaign raised much needed income but most importantly we’ve heard lots of stories from those who used or engaged with the material and found it supportive.

We are looking forward to Mothers’ Day on Sunday 10 March. This is a great opportunity to celebrate the variety of significant female figures in people's lives: birth mums, foster carers, aunties, kinship carers, adoptive parent and many more. We recognise that, for lots of reasons, it’s not an easy day for some. At Home for Good, we love to equip churches to mark this day well. We want to support churches across Scotland as they look to shape their Mothers’ Day services and activities. Look out for an email next week with further details.

More generally, we’ve started looking at opportunities to grow a more distinctively Scottish voice in some of our resources over the next couple of years – and we look forward to updating you about this later in 2024.

Opportunities to share

We have continued to share about Home for Good at Church of Scotland Guilds throughout the country, as part of our three-year partnership. In January, the Guilds gave another donation to Home for Good, and we’re immensely grateful for this support and the prayerful engagement in our work.

We have a number of other opportunities to speak in churches – in Sunday services and midweek gatherings. We love these opportunities to share, to inspire and to meet with people. Why not book a Home for Good speaker to come to your church service or event and help you explore how you can play your part in helping find homes for children who need them?

We have started to plan a few roadshow events around Scotland for 2024. These events will be hosted by churches and volunteers and will provide an opportunity for us to connect with people locally and share something of the work and vision of Home for Good. We’d love these events to be a gathering point for current foster carers, adoptive parents and supported lodgings hosts, as well as an opportunity for church leaders and those interested in finding out more about opening up their homes to children and young people. Please pray for us as we plan these events – and look out for details in the coming months. We’d love you to join us and bring others along!

Volunteers and Support Groups

It’s been exciting to see some more individuals across Scotland signing up to be volunteers with Home for Good and we’re particularly delighted that there’s an appetite from some churches to develop peer support groups as part of the Home for Good network.

New Peer Support Volunteer Ashley from Ellon, Aberdeenshire writes:

“I wanted to become a peer supporter as I benefited so much from Christian people supporting me through my journey over 13 years ago. Especially people who had lived experiences. I have a heart for care experienced young people and wanted to support others to open their homes and hearts too.”

The most exciting update has been seeing people we are supporting around Scotland having new children join their family. We pray for all the children transitioning into new family structures and homes.

Working with others

This month has been a great opportunity for Home for Good to reestablish our great connections with Safe Families on a local and national level. Safe Families is a UK Christian charity that equips local churches to support isolated families in their communities. Home for Good is partnering with Safe Families on a new approach with churches in London, we often collaborate and connect with one another. Here in Scotland, we have been increasing our partnership working with Safe Families. Tamsyn is also benefitting from the opportunity to base herself in the Safe Families office in Edinburgh for a day or two a week.

Advocacy in Scotland - volunteer opportunity

At Home for Good, we want to see top-down systemic change in each nation of the UK. In Scotland, we are stakeholders in The Promise and we are committed to sharing the voices of care experienced individuals and to play our part in bringing about lasting change. In order to help shape our advocacy work in Scotland, Home for Good is looking to recruit an advocacy volunteer. This person will help us connect with the Scottish parliament and will ensure that our advocacy team have a deeper understanding of the Scottish context. Similar advocacy volunteers are being recruited in Northern Ireland and Wales.

Our advocacy volunteers report to the Advocacy Lead and are supported by the Home for Good Operations team and National Leads. These volunteers will help ensure that Home for Good remains at the leading edge in its advocacy by building local and national insights, developing a knowledge base and providing practical support to the Advocacy Lead. Please email Tamsyn if you want to know more.

What can I be praying for?

We would love you to stand with us in prayer as we continue to work to find a home for every child who needs one in Scotland.

• Pray for the plans to support churches with Mothers’ Day and give thanks for the female figures that are often the unsung heroes in the lives of children and young people. Pray too for plans to develop our resources for churches in Scotland.
• Pray for Tamsyn, Rosie and their volunteer teams as they plan and prepare for roadshow events. Pray that these events and the church speaking engagements will inspired many people to join with Home for Good and play their part in finding homes.
• Pray for the volunteer network in Scotland and the new support groups that are being developed. Pray that these will be sources of inspiration, encouragement and support.
• Pray for God’s guidance and direction as we seek to recruit an advocacy volunteer for Scotland.

Check out our prayer resource, Let’s pray, for additional thoughts, inspiration and points to guide your prayers.

Are there any events happening soon that I can attend?

Head over to our Scotland page to find out what is happening in the area and find all the local support groups.

Take me there

How do I get in touch with a member of the Home for Good team in Scotland?

Tamsyn Radmall heads up Home for Good's work in Scotland and she would love to hear from you! You can contact them through the buttons below.

Email Tamsyn

Rosie Campbell - North-East Scotland Coordinator

Email Rosie