Poppie was 10 when she entered care, moving into a children's home in Hertfordshire at 12 and staying until just before her 18th birthday. With no contact with her birth family, she faced the dreaded "cliff edge" of aging out of the system last year. But instead of falling into the void, she landed in the arms of Brigitte Marshall, 58, and her son Reuben, 24, who were support workers at her care home. Reuben, her former key worker, helped her through GCSEs; now they accompany her to medical appointments and helped choose her college course. In September, she'll begin a health and care course, aiming to become a doctor. Poppie now attends family BBQs and calls Brigitte "mummy Brigitte."

This heartwarming tale is part of the government's Finding Family programme, piloted since 2023, which assigns coordinators to help kids in care build or rebuild relationships with trusted adults. Mackenzie, 20, spent six years in care after his mother died and his father relationship broke down. His coordinator helped him reconnect with aunts, uncles, cousins, and a half-sister, even arranging a family get-together. "It's wonderful to feel close to them again," he says.

The Department for Education has funded 25 local areas to employ coordinators, with a goal to cover all 80,000 children in care. During the pilot, supported young people made an average of nearly two meaningful relationships; over a third reconnected with family. The government is throwing £8.4 million over three years at the problem. Children's minister Josh MacAlister hopes the move will help kids "achieve and thrive," acknowledging that too many leave care without lifelong relationships.

But hold your applause. Young people leaving care are three times more likely to be NEET (not in education, employment, or training) and end up homeless within two years. Cathy Ashley of the Family Rights Group, which developed the Lifelong Links model behind the programme, calls the roll-out a "brilliant start" but warns the state system has "fundamentally failed for so long." She demands more housing and employment support. "We have to keep building from here," she says. So yes, a nice step - but the cliff edge is still pretty steep for most.