To launch the first ever National Supported Lodgings Week (NSLW) from 9 – 16 November 2025, Fostering in Somerset’s Stepping Stones team were invited to attend a parliamentary reception in Westminster.
Over 150 people attended the ‘Host the Future’ event on Monday 10 November, including hosts and leaving care workers from Somerset’s Stepping Stones team, joined by the young people they support.
Supported Lodgings is a national scheme where individuals or families offer a room and a supportive environment to young people aged 18–21, who are often leaving care and unable to live with their birth families. The Somerset Council scheme is known as Stepping Stones – helping young people build the vital life skills they need to thrive as young adults, such as cooking, cleaning and managing money.
NSLW celebrates the positive impact schemes like Stepping Stones have on the lives and futures of young people, and encourages others to consider joining the initiative by sharing inspirational stories from hosts and young people.
Cllr Heather Shearer, Lead Member for Children, Families and Education, said:
“It’s a privilege for our Stepping Stones team to be part of the launch of NSLW at Westminster.
“The scheme plays a crucial role in helping young people transition from care to independent adulthood, and I’m proud to see our hosts, support workers, and young people recognised on a national stage.
“Their stories are powerful, and I hope this week inspires more people to get involved in this life-changing initiative.”
Pat, a Stepping Stones host of 10 years who joined the team in Westminster, has supported seven young people during this time. She said:
“Myself and Leon were both invited to speak at the Westminster reception where we shared our thoughts on what it means to be a Stepping Stones host and how it has made a difference to our lives.’’
After a 30-year teaching career, Pat volunteered in Sierra Leone following her retirement. Upon her return to the UK, she initially became a respite foster carer, but quickly realised supporting older teenagers who were semi-independent was a better match for her lifestyle.
She added:
“I am 75 now but feel a lot younger with young people in my life. It is a great pleasure to share my life with them and see them move on to become independent adults.
‘’I would certainly recommend it to others and I often try to rope my friends into hosting’’.
Leon, who currently lives with Pat, said:
“Pat helps me with lots of things such as doctors’ appointments, shopping, helping me manage my money and small bits of advice on what I could do or should do.
“I wasn’t completely sure to begin with as I had never lived in someone else’s house but felt at home within a few days. I really would recommend any young person leaving care to consider going into someone’s home.”
November also marks National Care Leavers Month and Somerset Council will be illuminating County Hall in blue on 24 November, alongside organisations and landmarks nationwide to mark the occasion, including the London Eye and Blackpool Tower.
If you’re thinking of becoming a Stepping Stones host, you need to be aged 23 or over with a spare room in your home, and ideally live in or close to a Somerset town or village with good transport links and access to amenities.
Alongside training and support, Stepping Stones carers receive weekly payments to help support them financially, plus a contribution from the young person towards food and utilities.
For more information about Stepping Stones and fostering opportunities, please visit fosteringinsomerset.org.uk or call 0800 587 9900.
You will also find details of local ‘Cuppa with a Carer’ events happening across Somerset here: www.fosteringinsomerset.org.uk/events. These relaxed sessions allow those interested in fostering or supported lodgings to meet and chat to current carers and hosts over a coffee and slice of cake, providing a realistic insight into the challenges and rewards of supporting vulnerable children and young people in Somerset.
You’re not committing to anything by getting in touch to find out more, and you could help change a child’s story.
