New arts initiative aims to give care-experienced young people a voice beyond their case files

A new national arts initiative is aiming to challenge how care-experienced young people are perceived by giving them an opportunity to express their identities and experiences beyond official records and case files.

Independent fostering agency Apex Fostering has partnered with youth charity The Share Foundation to launch File Not Found, a nationwide youth-led art exhibition and competition open to care-experienced young people across the UK.

Organisers say the project, believed to be the first initiative of its kind on a national scale, will provide a platform for children and young people in care to explore self-expression through art while raising awareness of wider pressures facing the fostering system.

The launch comes amid growing demand for foster care placements and increasing concern about shortages of foster carers across England. Current estimates suggest around 5,000 additional foster families are needed to meet demand, with concerns that shortages are contributing to more children being placed in residential care or moved away from their local communities and siblings.

Sali Walker, founder of Apex Fostering, said the initiative aimed to ensure care-experienced young people were directly involved in conversations about the care system.

“Fostering across the UK needs more support and carers, and we want to ensure that young people are partaking in the conversation with their own perspectives and voices,” she said.

“We believe that the best way to stir public perception of fostering towards a positive light is to hear from those living in it. We want to make as much noise as possible, and partnering with charities like The Share Foundation is a great way to do this, and ensure the voices of care-experienced young people are heard.”

The competition is open to three age groups – 12 to 14, 15 to 17 and 18 to 26 – with submissions closing on 13 September. Young people entering the competition will also be able to access artistic mentoring and support through practising artists working with Apex Fostering and its partner organisations.

Twenty selected artworks will be displayed at the Oxo Gallery in London between 28 October and 1 November 2026. Each artwork will be accompanied by an audio narration explaining the young person’s story and creative inspiration.

Winning entrants in each category will receive creative development awards worth up to £1,000, including savings contributions managed by The Share Foundation for younger winners.

The Share Foundation, which has worked with young people in care for more than two decades through financial education and savings programmes, said the arts could play an important role in developing confidence and communication skills.

Chris Kenna, care leaver, trustee at The Share Foundation and a member of the judging panel, said: “The arts have a unique power in building confidence, communication, and creative skills – and we see that every day through The Share Foundation's work with young people in care.”

He added: “Care-experienced people deserve a greater voice – one that goes far beyond what any file could capture – so partnering with Apex Fostering felt like an obvious way to amplify something that really matters. And, as a care leaver myself, I didn't need much convincing to get involved as a judge. I can't wait to see how young people express their own story through art.”

The initiative launches at a time of wider reform and scrutiny across the fostering sector, including ongoing efforts to recruit more foster carers and improve support for children in care.

Recent government announcements have included a £12.4 million Fostering Innovation Fund intended to modernise foster care and support the creation of 10,000 new placements during the current Parliament.

Alongside this, a new practice guide commissioned by the Department for Education and produced by Foundations has highlighted the importance of evidence-based, wraparound support for foster carers in improving placement stability and retention.

The guide found foster carers valued peer support networks, tailored emotional support and opportunities to discuss their own experiences and wellbeing, with researchers arguing that stronger support systems were essential as children entering care increasingly present with more complex needs.

Organisers of File Not Found said the exhibition aimed not only to showcase young people’s creativity but also to challenge wider assumptions about children in care and the systems surrounding them.