'Taking in my great-grandkids at 74 saved me'

A pensioner who became a kinship carer to prevent her two great-granddaughters from going into care says she knew she had to do it despite criticism from some friends.

Valerie, 74, took responsibility for the girls when her daughter, who had been looking after them after their own parents were unable to, died suddenly.

She has been supported by Somerset Council's kinship team and said she chose to speak out during Kinship Care Week, running until Sunday, to highlight the important but often invisible role kinship carers play in our communities.

"My girls needed me. They've saved me as well as me helping them," she said.

Valerie said overnight she found herself not only mourning the loss of her daughter but also becoming the girls' primary carer.

Alongside supporting the children through their loss, she was faced with practical worries about finances and managing a household she had not previously been responsible for running.

Valerie admits that returning to parenting in her seventies has been a "challenge".

"I was scared because I didn't know what the future would hold," she said.

"I'm not young by any means, and I was there signing to keep the girls safe until they're 18. It's very, very scary."

She told BBC Somerset she had also lost two good friends since becoming a kinship carer.

"They said I was selfish taking them on, that I should let them be adopted to younger parents," she said.

"I can understand that for some children that might be better going to a younger family maybe.

In my case, I knew my girls extremely well. I knew my health was reasonably good. I've got a lot of energy, and I love my girls tremendously."

She said her case worker in the kinship team, Charlotte Stiles, has been "amazingly supportive".

The council supports kinship families across the county and works with carers to help children remain safely connected to their family network wherever possible.

"Charlotte is there at the end of a phone, she's come to school meetings with me, she's offered me advice, she points me in the right direction," Valerie said.

"Charlotte has made the last few years much, much easier."

Stiles said she was "blown away" by Valerie's commitment to the girls.

"I thought how incredible - she sacrificed her dream of retirement to make sure these girls have the best life they possibly could," she said.

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