Please Don’t Take My Baby

‘OK,’ I said. ‘Welcome.’

‘He’ll just be here for a short while,’ Rachel said. ‘So he knows Jade is all right, and then he’ll be leaving.’

Tyler looked about aged twelve and beside Jade looked more like her son than boyfriend. Not only was she taller than him by a good two inches, but she was also about twice his width and matronly. I thought she’d probably been a bit overweight before her pregnancy but now with her stomach distended she was certainly a big girl and, to use a saying, looked as though she could have eaten him for dinner. She was plain but not unattractive, with chin-length brown hair. She was dressed in black leggings and a long jumper, which was stretched tightly over her bump.

Tyler was carrying a zipped holdall, which I assumed contained Jade’s belongings, and I suggested he left it in the hall. I then showed the three of them through to the sitting room, where Jill stood to greet them. I asked Rachel, Jade and Tyler if they would like something to drink but they didn’t want anything. Jade and Tyler sat close together at one end of the sofa and Rachel sat at the other, while Jill and I took the single chairs. Rachel was tall and slender and I guessed in her late twenties. She had a pleasant manner, warm and vibrant, although I thought she could be firm when necessary.

‘Thank you for agreeing to take Jade,’ Rachel said, removing a wodge of papers from her large bag-cum-briefcase. ‘She’s promised me she’s going to behave herself.’ Which suggested she might not have behaved herself in the past.

I smiled at Jade. She linked her arm through Tyler’s but didn’t smile back and concentrated on the carpet.

‘I’m pleased to be able to help,’ I said brightly. ‘I’m sure Jade and I will get along fine. I’m looking forward to having a teenager in the house.’

Tyler glanced at me, while Jade continued staring at the carpet.

‘Everything you need should be in here,’ Rachel said, passing a set of paperwork to me and then another to Jill. ‘Essential information and consent form – for the fostering. I’ve run through the contents with Jade and at her age she’ll sign the consent as well.’

I nodded and quickly flicked through the papers, which included the contact details of the social services; Jade’s mother’s address, which Jade had given as her permanent home; the names and dates of birth of Jade’s siblings; and the names and date of birth of the baby’s father, from which I quickly calculated Tyler to be only sixteen. Jill was also glancing through the paperwork.

‘Cathy,’ Rachel said after a moment, ‘I would like you to make sure Jade attends her antenatal appointments. She’s missed some in the past and they are important.’

‘Absolutely,’ I said. ‘When is the next one due?’

‘Next week,’ Rachel said. ‘She attends the Lakeview Health Centre for her antenatal care.’

‘I want Tyler to come too,’ Jade said, finally raising her eyes from the floor to look at Rachel.

‘That’s fine,’ Rachel said, ‘as long as he doesn’t miss school. You’ve got exams this year, haven’t you?’

Tyler shrugged. ‘Maybe. Dunno. I’m leaving school as soon as I can.’

‘When exactly is the appointment?’ Jill now asked.

‘Jade has the appointment card in her bag,’ Rachel said.

‘It’s in the hall. I’ll get it later,’ Jade said.

‘Make sure you tell Cathy the date in plenty of time,’ Jill said to Jade. ‘Cathy has two children and she has to work around their commitments too.’

Jade nodded sullenly, but I appreciated she had a lot to cope with and how difficult all this must be for her.

‘Jade has some of her clothes with her,’ Rachel said, moving on, ‘enough for tonight and a couple of days, but she’s hoping to collect some more of her belongings from home tomorrow. Aren’t you, Jade?’

Jade nodded.

‘Jade won’t be attending school any more,’ Rachel continued, looking at me, ‘so perhaps the two of you could go to her home tomorrow and pick up her things? Jade has a front door key if no one is in.’

‘That’s fine with me,’ I said. ‘We’ll go in my car.’

‘Will Jade’s mother be home?’ Jill asked, mindful that some parents are angry towards the foster carer when their child is taken into care.

Rachel looked at Jade, who shrugged. ‘Dunno,’ she said.

‘Jade’s mother works part time,’ Rachel said. ‘But she’s all right with me, so there shouldn’t be a problem meeting you. She’s happy for Jade to visit whenever she wants to.’

‘Are you comfortable going?’ Jill asked me.

‘Yes,’ I said. I was usually able to work with the parents whose children I fostered. However, I was becoming increasingly aware of just how different it was going to be fostering a teenager compared to a younger child; for example, children in care normally only see their parents at supervised contact, whereas Jade could go and see her mother any time. Another reminder followed quickly, as Rachel said: ‘I’ve told Jade that this placement is for her only. She can see Tyler but he is not to stay here overnight.’

Chapter Three (#)

Awkward (#)

‘So where can he sleep?’ Jade asked, somewhat disgruntled.

‘My mum says if I’m not staying at your place I have to go home,’ Tyler said.

‘Very sensible,’ Rachel said. ‘That solves the problem.’ Then, addressing Jill and me, Rachel explained: ‘Tyler has been sleeping at Jade’s house for some time but it was very overcrowded.’

‘No it wasn’t,’ Jade said. ‘He slept with me – in my room.’

Jill and I exchanged a glance, for it would appear that Jade’s mother had actively encouraged her seventeen-year-old daughter to sleep with her sixteen-year-old boyfriend and now she was pregnant had thrown her out.

Rachel didn’t respond to Jade’s comment but continued with the paperwork, checking through her copy and pointing out details that were relevant to me looking after Jade, while Jill and I followed on our copies. I read that Jade was the eldest of five children and she and the two elder siblings had the same surname, while the younger two had a different surname. Jade’s mother’s date of birth made her thirty-five, so she must have been eighteen when she’d had Jade. Jade’s father’s name and date of birth were given – he was the same age as Jade’s mother – but he didn’t live with Jade’s mother, and there was no contact address for him. In the section headed ‘health of young person’ it stated that Jade was pregnant – approximately thirty weeks – and her emotional and developmental health was age appropriate. Under ‘education’ it showed that Jade had gained six GCSEs the summer before and that she was part way through an A-level course, which she hoped to continue after her baby was born.

‘You mentioned that Jade might be receiving some home tuition,’ Jill asked Rachel.

‘We’ve decided to leave it until after the baby is born,’ Rachel said. ‘Jade felt she wouldn’t be able to concentrate at present with everything else.’ Which I fully appreciated, although I wondered how she would be able to concentrate on studying with a young baby to look after. ‘Perhaps you could teach Jade some home-care skills?’ Rachel asked me. ‘Basic cooking, for example, to help prepare her for when she lives independently.’

‘Yes, I’d be pleased to,’ I said, again smiling at Jade.

‘I can cook already,’ Jade said a little dourly.

‘Great. You can help me, then,’ I said lightly, throwing her another smile.

Rachel ran through the rest of the forms and then the four of us signed the last page, which formed the contract: Jade was signing to give her consent to being in care, Rachel signed as the social worker responsible, Jill signed as the representative of the fostering agency and my support social worker, and I signed to agree to the terms of looking after Jade. If I wanted to end a placement early I had to give the social services and Homefinders twenty-eight days’ notice in writing, but that hadn’t happened yet.

‘So what are you going to do this evening, then?’ Rachel asked Jade as she packed away her copy of the papers.

Jade shrugged.

‘We’ll be having dinner soon,’ I said, for I noticed it was nearly half past six.

‘That sounds good,’ Rachel said. ‘What are you going to have?’

‘Spaghetti bolognese,’ I replied.

‘Lovely. I expect you’re hungry,’ Rachel said to Jade as she closed her briefcase.