Joe Swash has confirmed he and wife Stacey Solomon plan to grow their family after already having three children together.
Joe and Stacey, who were married in July 2022, also both have kids from previous relationships. Former EastEnders star Joe, 41, has said he was recently moved by a “heartbreaking” situation which led to him wanting to take in some teenagers.
The TV actor and presenter was motivated to make a BBC documentary by a Government review into kids’ social care, which found the system has been woefully underfunded for more than a decade by successive Tory governments, the Mirror reports.
READ MORE: Kate Garraway supported by Claire Sweeney as she shares Derek hospital struggle
And he has a personal reason for wanting to get involved – his own mother, Kiffy, has been a foster carer for 15 years,
Joe is now set upon fostering in the future, saying he and Stacey will look into it once their own children are older. Joe, 41, said many of the young people he met were clearly struggling. He added: “I wanted to do more for them.
“There’s not much I can do apart from shining a light on the situation and that was a real struggle. I just wanted to take them all home with me, I just wanted to parent them, but I couldn’t, which was sad.
“Anyone who met these teenagers would come away and feel guilty and feel like they’ve let them down in some way.”
Joe’s focus is on older teens due to leave the care system, unprepared for adulthood. At 18, many have no family or support network and are isolated. Statistics show those in care are four times likelier to have a criminal record than other kids and more vulnerable to being groomed or lured into gangs.
He is proud that mum Kiffy, widowed when Joe’s youngest sister Shana was just two, became a foster carer. She has looked after his foster brother Daniel for 10 years, since he was eight, and helped him get into university.
However Daniel’s experience is not repeated for many care leavers. The Independent Review Of Children’s Social Care in England, commissioned by the Government in 2019, came out last year and found children’s social care in England is at breaking point and needs a “reset” costing far more than the Government is prepared to pay.
Joe said: “The review suggests that if we invest £2.6billion now it will completely transform the care system and save us billions down the line.
“But the Government has said they’re putting in £200m. What’s the point of a review if you’re not going to do what it recommends? It is frustrating.”
The review’s chair, Josh MacAllister, added: “What we’ve got is a care system that was built to care for younger children, not for teenagers.”
He warns that without major investment, in a decade there will be 100,000 children in care in England, 20,000 more than currently. The fastest growing group is older teens, with an increase of 37% in the last decade alone.
Josh warns that children’s homes are full, there too few foster carers and more support is needed for grandparents, aunts and uncles to play a bigger role.
Joe says he and Stacey, both 33, have discussed fostering. They already share three children – Rex, four, Rose, one and four-month-old Belle. Joe also has a son, Harry, 15, from a previous relationship and is stepfather to her sons Zachary, 15, and Leighton, 11.
Joe said: “When the kids are old enough, we’ll think about fostering. We love kids and Stacey is on the same page as me. She watched my mum’s journey, she’s watched Daniel’s journey. She’s been a massive support.”
Joe Swash: Teens in Care airs Tuesday, July 11, at 9pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer
Receive newsletters with the biggest and breaking TV and showbiz news by signing up here
