MANY children no doubt take a loving family home for granted.

But 340 other youngsters from Huddersfield are not so lucky and end up in foster care.

There are some dedicated foster carers in the area who can then give them the stable and caring environment they need, even if it is only temporary.

But there simply aren’t enough of them which means around 100 of the youngsters are having to live away from their home town.

This shouldn’t happen.

Surely it is vital that the children stay as close as possible to their original areas so they can keep up vital contact with other relatives and friends.

It can be an emotional upheaval for them to live in a new environment – especially as many have come from difficult family lives – without being so far removed from all that is familiar to them.

Those who volunteer to become foster carers are wonderful people who always put the needs of these often vulnerable children first.

No doubt there are rewards from this task and simply putting a smile back on these young faces can certainly be one of them.

People get financial help for the great job they do and let’s hope more now come forward to volunteer.

There is no excuse for not simply finding out more. After all, Huddersfield Giants have invited every foster carer in Kirklees to their game on September 11 and a community room has been put aside so people interested in joining this dedicated group can find out more about it from those who do the role day in, day out.

Clearly checks need to be made into potential carers’ backgrounds, but let’s hope the red tape and administration is kept to a minimum so those wanting to do this vital job can get on and do it.