FosterFind

Project Overview

About this Project

With over 100,000 children in care in the UK and the persistent shortage of foster placements, I designed FosterFind, a digital concept aimed at making the fostering process faster and more accessible. Over 13 weeks, I covered the end-to-end UX and brand design, from initial research with foster parents through to high-fidelity prototypes. The goal was to reduce the time children spend without a placement by connecting foster carers and children more efficiently through a dedicated safe digital service.

Planning

Project Planning

Gantt Chart outlaying the project direction throughout the entirety of the project.

Problem Statement

In recent years, there have been record-high numbers of children in care, leading to an increased demand for foster carers. However, despite this demand, finding a suitable foster child can take weeks, if not months for qualified foster carers. This results in more foster children waiting for a placement because of these delays, essentially causing a never-ending build-up of children in care, waiting for placements.

Secondary Research

Current Process

For this section, I looked at the current process of how a foster child is able to gain a placement with a foster carer. From reviewing this, I believe that this system can be improved which is why I am going to be focusing on the earlier stage of this process for this digital concept.

The Fostering Process - From starting a fostering career to finally getting a foster child

Task: William wants a career in fostering

Motivation: William wants a career where he helps out others whilst still bringing in a steady income

User Research

Surveys

To gain a clearer understanding of the needs and pain points of foster carers, I sent out an online survey to collect some data.

Affinity Diagram

Collected feedback from focus groups and surveys

Customer Persona

I am aiming to create this service specifically for foster carers. I decided on this as foster carers currently lack a digital service to assist them in finding a suitable foster child, often having to rely on their social worker. Therefore, I have created two customer personas based on this target audience which is supported by my findings in the focus group and surveys.