Hart - The girl and the ghosts: the true story of a lost little girl and the foster carer who rescued her from the past

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It was early on a Thursday afternoon when my support social worker phoned to ask us to take in a little girl called Maria. What sticks in my mind about that day was the amount of rain wed had and the fact that flooding had been forecast for the outskirts of our town.

My husband, Jonathan, was loading up the delivery van in the pouring rain while I checked the list of orders for the afternoons flower deliveries.

Great weather for ducks, he said, standing for a moment in the open doorway, dripping onto the doormat, before picking up another armful of flowers and heading back out into the deluge.

As soon as he had closed the door behind him the phone rang.

Afternoon, Angela. How are you?

It was the familiar voice of Jess, our support social worker.

Great, apart from all the rain! I said cheerfully.

Its not great news for the festival, is it? Jess said, as she knew Id been involved in organising the annual event in the town and was preparing flowers for the parade floats.

No, not good at all. If the weathers as bad as they say its going to be, it will definitely have an effect on the number of people who attend. Its such a pity when so many people have put so much effort into organising it.

I liked Jess. She was only in her mid-twenties but she was one of the best support social workers wed ever had. She always made an effort to chat and find out what else was going on in my life outside fostering. The empathy and people skills she effortlessly displayed were priceless in her work, particularly when it came to dealing with the unique needs of each of the children she was responsible for.

What she lacks in terms of years of practical experience she more than makes up for with her understanding personality, Jonathan had commented one time, and he was spot on.

There was only one customer in our flower shop when Jess phoned, a woman I knew who was choosing some dried-flower arrangements to decorate the cake competition tent at the festival that Saturday.

I try never to be overheard when discussing fostering, which Jess understood, so as it was our part-time assistant Barbaras day off I carried on chatting to Jess about the weather and the festival until Jonathan came back in.

He appeared and realised immediately, from the neutral tone of my voice as I spoke to Jess, that the call was foster carer rather than florist related. So, when I nodded my head in the direction of the door that led into our house, where I could continue the conversation in private, he raised his thumb to indicate that hed understood.

Closing the door to the shop behind me, I went into the kitchen and sat down. It had been a very busy morning and it was a relief to take the weight off my feet for the first time in the last three hours.

OK, I can talk properly now, I told Jess down the phone.

Great, thanks Angela, she said kindly.

I knew how busy she was too I have never met a social worker who has enough hours in the day and I was impressed by her patience. I cant imagine she had any real interest in the floral displays I described to her, but she knew me well enough to know Im not the type to babble on about things unnecessarily, and that I was only making polite conversation because there was a customer in the shop.

So, I have a little girl called Maria. Shes only seven and Id only need you to have her for a short while. Just a few days.

Well, we do have room, I said. Im sure its fine. Ill just have to check with Jonathan. What else can you tell me?

Well, Jess said, giving a little laugh. Its short notice for a change! Id need you to take her today.

Today? I said with a question in my voice.

It wasnt unusual to take in a child at very short notice like this, because once a decision has been made that a child is going into foster care then immediate action often needs to be taken, particularly if the courts have intervened and made an order.

The question in my voice had more to do with Marias circumstances. I wondered why the seven-year-old needed our help, and my immediate thought was, Poor thing, I hope shes all right. I knew Jonathan would feel the same way, but we had a rule that we took all fostering decisions together.

Though Jonathan and I had been working for many years as specialist carers for teenagers who needed a bit of extra support above and beyond mainstream foster care, we did take in younger children if the need arose, and if we had space. As it was we had two teenage boys living with us, which left us with one spare bedroom. At this point in time the first half of the nineties we were passed to take in up to three children at any one time, so I couldnt see any reason not to help Maria.

What can you tell me about her? I asked.

I heard the rustle of paperwork.

In a nutshell, Marias school contacted Social Services today because they were concerned about some quite severe bruising they noticed on her arms. It turns out there is bruising on her back too. Shes been in foster care before, about eighteen months ago, but was returned to her mother. Ive tried the same foster carer but unfortunately she doesnt have enough room at the moment for Maria.

Jess mentioned the name of Marias previous foster carer, who was a woman I knew well from the support groups for carers that Jonathan and I attended every couple of months. But before I had a chance to ask how Marias placement went previously, Jess said, I have to be honest, there was a problem last time. Nothing major though.

What happened?

It was just that Maria wasnt getting on very well with the foster carers daughter, whos about the same age as she is. It wasnt necessarily Marias fault. The thing is, Maria can be a bit moody.

Jess paused. While I said, I see..., and waited for her to tell me more, I thought about the two children who were already staying with us Tom and Dillon and about the possible impact Maria might have on their lives, even for a few days.

When I say moody, Jess went on, I mean she has a temper and a tendency to throw things when she doesnt get what she wants. But, as I say, its nothing serious. The only reason I feel it was difficult during the previous placement was because the two girls were the same age and they fell out on a regular basis. And as the children youre already fostering are older, I really dont think that will be an issue.

Thanks for being honest, I said. I trust your opinion, and Im sure itll be fine, though of course as I say Ill have to check with Jonathan.

Thank you, Angela! Youre a star! The child protection team picked Maria up directly from her school earlier today and theyve got an Emergency Protection Order. They have her sitting in their office at the moment, so I have to find somewhere for her to stay tonight.

Right. Give me a few minutes and Ill call you back.

I could already feel the twinge of slightly nervous excitement I always get during that first phone conversation, when Im asked if we can take on a new placement. I was already anticipating how Maria would fit in and was looking forward to meeting her and helping her settle.

When I went back into the shop, Jonathan was carefully wrapping up the flowers that had eventually been chosen by the customer who had been there when the phone rang.

So, is it a girl or a boy, and how old? Jonathan asked as soon as we were alone in the shop.

My husband knew from the animated look on my face, and the way I was itching to talk to him, that our social worker had been asking us to look after another child. I filled Jonathan in as quickly as I could and he gave a thin, sad smile.