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Louise Allen
Louise Allen was a foster child who underwent an unspeakably tough childhood with cruel and sadistic foster-parents in the 1970s who then adopted her. She managed to stay alive by eating scraps fed to her by travellers camping nearby and found solace in the beauty of the natural world. At the age of 15 she ran away but found herself in a series of abusive relationships and resorted to drugs and alcohol to bury her pain. Eventually, her skills in painting and drawing and her determination not to let her childhood define her were what helped her forge a healthy adult life. The publication of her book, THROWN AWAY CHILD, in December 2017 coincided with the start of her campaign, Looking After Looked After Children. She firmly believes that there is hope for all children who have been abused and that a damaged childhood does not need to scar a person for life.
Louise is the author of the bestselling THROWN AWAY CHILDREN series, which tells the stories of some of the children she has fostered and their often heartbreaking pasts. Louise's guide to adoption, HOW TO ADOPT A CHILD will be published in April 2021. Now happily married with her own children, she also fosters children herself, and campaigns for a better system, doing what she can to right the wrongs still being perpetrated against foster children. This includes working with organisations such as the University of Plymouth to set up a national foster care workers apprenticeship (which replaces the current just 9 hours training to work with the most vulnerable, complex and demanding children in society) and campaigning through European Court for foster care workers to be paid the minimum wage (instead of 30p per hour). She is also currently Press Officer for the Union of Foster Care Workers (FCWU) Union FCWU and an ambassador for Families for Children which is an adoption organisation. She is a Trustee for Spaeda, an arts education charity and part of an All Party Parliamentary Group looking into the provision of fostering and adoption services. She also writes and illustrates stories for children in care, fostered or adopted or living in split families and worked with UniBall on a youtube campaign for using art mindfully. Her Thrown Away Child paintings are currently in an exhibition at Liverpool Hope University. Louise has appeared on BBC's Front Row, Saturday Live, That’s Life, Loose Women and This Morning. In April 2019 she spoke at The Care Experienced Conference to a mix of lawyers, foster carers, academics, social workers and - for the first time ever - people who were in care. She is a patron for Families for Children and hopes to be involved in rewriting the Children Act. Visit Louise Allen's website. Follow Louise on Instagram. Listen to Louise on Front Row. |
Praise for the Thrown Away Child series
'Extremely well written, I couldn't put it down. From the first words I was deeply drawn into Louise's torturous & harrowing world which had bubbled away underneath the smooth sheen & veneer of Upper Middle Class England for well over a decade.' Amazon Reviewer
'Louise was fantastic on BBC Saturday Live. She is a shining light.' Emily Finch, BBC
'Sometimes you think you are alone. Thank you for being so brave and putting this difficult subject out there, reminding us that we are not alone.' BBC reviewer
Praise for How to Adopt a Child
'It is a very moving, passionate and a clear guide which all adopters would benefit from - it is packed full of important ideas and lots of excellent information and advice FF would entirely agree with - refreshingly good sound advice.' Jay Vaughan, CEO and Registered Manager, Family Futures CIC VAA
'A must-have guide for anyone considering or in the process of adopting a child or children.' Kim Golding, clinical psychologist and adoption specialist.
'Louise Allen makes it clear from the very first pages that this is a book with adoptive parents and their children at its heart. She writes from personal experience, laying out every aspect of the adoption process, in order that those thinking about adoption might have no surprises later. Not to put people off - unless that is the right response - but to leave you fully informed, fully armed, fully prepared to offer the support, the healing and love that will be needed. There is much about trauma, which will feature heavily for children who find themselves in need of a home. Allen pulls no punches in describing what this looks and feels like for the child, and the consequential feelings for the adults, but she goes on to offer very practical advice that comes from many years of training, parenting, and above all listening to children. As she says, “Living with a violent child that you have committed to love while everyone around you is offering their opinion is hard, very hard”. Allen is here to make it just a little less hard.' Helen Bonnick, Holes in the Wall
'I have been supporting carers and adopters for many years and this ground-breaking book is exactly what has been needed. There is nothing else like it out there: it advocates for adoption, adopters and for the children, it speaks truth to power without dissuading anyone wanting to adopt. It helps adopters navigate a complex, imperfect and sometime conflicted system, helps them advocate for themselves and their children which in turn provides the safe strong foundation for a successful adoption. I cannot recommend this brilliant book highly enough. Louise Allen writes with such clarity, authenticity and honesty, a rare gift. There is simply no one more qualified to write this book than her.' Sarah Andersen, Tandem
'Extremely well written, I couldn't put it down. From the first words I was deeply drawn into Louise's torturous & harrowing world which had bubbled away underneath the smooth sheen & veneer of Upper Middle Class England for well over a decade.' Amazon Reviewer
'Louise was fantastic on BBC Saturday Live. She is a shining light.' Emily Finch, BBC
'Sometimes you think you are alone. Thank you for being so brave and putting this difficult subject out there, reminding us that we are not alone.' BBC reviewer
Praise for How to Adopt a Child
'It is a very moving, passionate and a clear guide which all adopters would benefit from - it is packed full of important ideas and lots of excellent information and advice FF would entirely agree with - refreshingly good sound advice.' Jay Vaughan, CEO and Registered Manager, Family Futures CIC VAA
'A must-have guide for anyone considering or in the process of adopting a child or children.' Kim Golding, clinical psychologist and adoption specialist.
'Louise Allen makes it clear from the very first pages that this is a book with adoptive parents and their children at its heart. She writes from personal experience, laying out every aspect of the adoption process, in order that those thinking about adoption might have no surprises later. Not to put people off - unless that is the right response - but to leave you fully informed, fully armed, fully prepared to offer the support, the healing and love that will be needed. There is much about trauma, which will feature heavily for children who find themselves in need of a home. Allen pulls no punches in describing what this looks and feels like for the child, and the consequential feelings for the adults, but she goes on to offer very practical advice that comes from many years of training, parenting, and above all listening to children. As she says, “Living with a violent child that you have committed to love while everyone around you is offering their opinion is hard, very hard”. Allen is here to make it just a little less hard.' Helen Bonnick, Holes in the Wall
'I have been supporting carers and adopters for many years and this ground-breaking book is exactly what has been needed. There is nothing else like it out there: it advocates for adoption, adopters and for the children, it speaks truth to power without dissuading anyone wanting to adopt. It helps adopters navigate a complex, imperfect and sometime conflicted system, helps them advocate for themselves and their children which in turn provides the safe strong foundation for a successful adoption. I cannot recommend this brilliant book highly enough. Louise Allen writes with such clarity, authenticity and honesty, a rare gift. There is simply no one more qualified to write this book than her.' Sarah Andersen, Tandem