'It's just the best feeling ever' - Tipperary couple on fostering three baby siblings

There are currently over 6,000 children in care in Ireland and this figure is growing every day.

Unfortunately, a lot of children in Ireland cannot live with their own family, either on a short-term or long-term basis for various reasons and are therefore brought into State care.

This could be because of illness in the family, the death of a parent, neglect, abuse or violence in the home, or sometimes it can be because the parent or family is not coping and they need respite or long-term help. Foster families are often the safety net for children in those situations; people like Nicola and John Cleere from Tipperary.

Ahead of Fostering Awareness Week which starts March 2nd 2026, Tipperary Live spoke to the local couple about their life-changing fostering experience.

The Tipperary couple took on a huge challenge of taking in three siblings all under the age of three to their home and they say it was the best decision they ever made in their lives.

"Fostering was always something we thought about in our relationship and we knew that when we were finished having our own children, like our birth children, that we wanted to help out other kids," Nicola told us.

Nicola and John have two biological children of their own aged seven and twelve but they had more room to love so decided to look into fostering.

"So we just waited until the time was right. We bought our own house and then after Covid hit it kind of gave us a push because I wasn't working. It felt like the right time to apply to be foster carers," Nicola added.

She said she heard Fostering First Ireland (FFI) offered brilliant support so they made contact with the organisation to kick start their fostering journey.

"The fact that we had young kids of our own, we wanted to make sure that they were fully supported in the journey as well. So that's why we contacted FFI and we started the assessment process which takes about six months. It is a very enjoyable process."

Nicola explained that her and John are both very caring people and they knew that they had a lot of love left to give to a child.

"Every child deserves the right to a safe and happy home."

READ NEXT: Longstanding Tipperary family run business McLoughlin’s Hardware to close after 40 years - Tipperary Live

Nicola and John's three foster siblings joined their family three years ago and Nicola said that the past few years with them have been amazing.

"It's the best decision that we've ever made as a family. There's so much joy and happiness in the house and just seeing their little faces and how happy they are and the life that we can give them is amazing."

Nicola said that there is a big shortage of foster carers at the minute in Ireland and would recommend fostering to anyone who is able to.

"There is over 6,000 children in care and that number does not go down, it goes up the whole time.

"There's not enough foster carers to meet this demand. So if anybody is even considering it and if they think that they have the room, if they have a spare room in their house and they have the love to give, just contact FFI and make the start.

"Even just enquire about it and take the first step because you could change a child's life with just one call."

A highlight for Nicola and John in their fostering experience was getting to bring three siblings to their home together so that they didn't have to be separated.

"Just being able to have them grow up together, listening to love at home and I feel like even though they're three under three, they love each other so so much.

"It's just constant hugs and just a whole family unit. I think the positive is what we're doing for these kids, it's just the best feeling ever."

John added that it is "extremely rewarding" and highly recommends fostering to other parents.

READ ALSO: A new restaurant is being planned for a landmark Clonmel building - Tipperary Live

Fostering First Ireland has made Nicola and John's fostering journey very easy, they offer a support line 24/7 and a social worker on hand who works with their family very regularly.

"You have therapists that work alongside FFI as well so if anything comes up you have somebody to support you if you need it.

"There's educational officers as well so you'll have somebody that'll help the children with school and then you have a care group once a month where you will go and meet with all the different foster carers."

The monthly meet-ups involve foster parents in Tipperary coming together to discuss their day-to-day lives with each other, get advice and create connections with other parents in the same boat as them.

"Even from this interview, if people read it and even think about fostering and make that call, it's just that one step closer to changing your life and a child's life. It's amazing," Nicola said.

If you are interested in fostering a child, you can send an enquiry to www.fosteringfirstireland.ie or call Fostering Advisor Jess directly on 087 9394697.

You can also attend one of their fortnightly information sessions which are held online with fostering advisors and experienced foster carers.

Fostering First Ireland's criteria to be able to foster a child is as follows: 

- You need to be over the age of twenty-five, there is no upper age with fostering you just need to be in good health and have a reliable support network around you.- You should have a spare bedroom available, foster children can not share with your own children.- If you have children, your youngest should be at least 3 years old. You do not need children to foster.- You should have your full driving licence, there are a lot of appointments that come up for children in care so it is important that you can travel to and from them.

"Fostering is the most amazing rewarding journey you will ever experience, one piece of advice that our foster carers would always give is to just get going and try not to think too much about making that call. You are always supported by professionals and never alone once you get started you will not look back," Fostering First Ireland said.