Subari Fostering Agency
Jeana Dorival, Founder
LOCAL LEGENDS
My name is Constantia Pennie, I am a qualified Social Worker, Teacher, Solicitor and Barrister. I have over 40 years’ experience in social work having worked in local authorities rising from basic grade to Assistant Director including10 years’ experience of working in the social care voluntary sector. My specialism has always been fostering and adoption and having managed a fostering agency for 10 years and sitting on numerous national advisory bodies I always wanted to run my own agency.
On a sunny afternoon in July 2021, I decided to follow that dream. I contacted Barbara Walters-Ennis who I had worked with on several of her entrepreneurial ventures. She is an amazing black woman, a qualified social worker with over 30 years’ experience of setting up and running various businesses such as parenting assessment units and other fostering agencies. I shared my dream and asked her if she would come on board; she said yes and brought on board another amazing black woman, Valerie Fitzpatrick with who I had also worked. She is a qualified children’s worker who has 30 years’ experience of working with children in schools, play schemes, parenting assessment and fostering units.
We are the 3 Directors of Subari Foster Care, and we are a force to be reckoned with. In less than 3 years we have set up our company and grown from strength to strength having been registered by Ofsted obtaining a ‘Good’ rating from the outset.
We are proud that all our approved foster carers have joined us through word-of-mouth recommendations. We have a range of children placed by several different councils with our carers and several of those placements have come about because social workers have either worked with us previously and been very satisfied or they have heard about our excellent service provision on the grapevine. We expect and receive a high quality of care from our foster carers evidenced by the positive feedback we regularly receive from placing social workers and other professionals we work with, many commenting on the fact that staff and carers go over and beyond their usual expectations.
We focus on recruiting and training foster carers who can provide a caring, nurturing, stable and supportive environments for children with diverse needs, including those with emotional, behavioural, or developmental challenges. We welcome foster carers from all background (the majority of our carers are Black) and likewise we have children placed from a range of backgrounds, races and cultures with our focus being on providing culturally sensitive care, ensuring that children’s unique needs and identities are respected and supported.
We ensure that our carers are remunerated well whilst also providing them with opportunities for training and further development. It is heartwarming to hear our carers describe working with Subari as being part of a family where everyone matters and are treated as professional people and not seen as just a resource.
We offer 24/7 assistance to foster carers, providing resources, advice, and access to social workers and therapeutic services.
We empower foster carers through strong networks of support, personal and professional growth. However, our main aim is to focus on stability, safety, and the holistic well-being for children taking pride in and celebrating all their achievements no matter how big or small.
Subari, which means ‘Patience Rewarded’ is more than just a fostering agency – it’s a foster family.