The new John Lewis Christmas advert has sparked an emotional response from viewers, as the retailer shared the heartwarming journey of a couple preparing to welcome a foster child to their home. While it left many viewers teary, for foster parents like Trevor Elliott, the message was particularly powerful.
By the age of 25, the former youth worker was one of the UK’s youngest foster carers – decades far below the average age of a first time fosterer who is aged between 45 to 54. Strangers found it 'unbelievable' that a young man would become a fosterer, rather than spend his time out partying.
But his mates understood his choice - and Trevor says he never looked back, as his line of work has proven to be life-changing, both for him and for the children he's cared for.
The John Lewis advert follows a man working hard to master the art of skateboarding – with lots of mishaps and injuries along the way. At the end of the 90-second clip, we see why he's gone to all that effort - the couple open the door to welcome in a social worker, and foster kid Ellie, who is incredibly anxious, but bonds with the man after spotting his skateboard.
Reflecting on the early days, Trevor, who has been awarded an MBE for his services to vulnerable children, told the Mirror: "I worked with young people and children since I was 18, and a lot of the time the children will come back a week later and all the work you've done is reset because they often become a product of their environment.
"So I had a property with spare bedrooms and I thought, what a great thing to do, if I could provide accommodation to children and I can create an environment that could allow them to grow and flourish."
As a young foster carer, he faced parents doubting whether he would even be capable of raising their child - but he gradually built up trust over the years.
The first child he cared for was an unaccompanied minor who couldn't speak much English so Trevor met up with him beforehand to play football, which helped to build a sense of connection.
He recalled: "With my other two who came, it was just a case of just, for me, not asking them too many questions and showing them their rooms and giving them time and letting them know that I'll be there for them. Over time, that really worked."
For the first five years of his fostering, Trevor had the same three foster children living with him, who were in their teen years when they moved in and left by 21, in order to live independently.
Another teenager he cared for had no firm sense of his identity when he first came into his care - but left a keen skateboarder, with striking parallels to the John Lewis advert.
Recalling the youngster's progress, Trevor said: "It was just unbelievable to see him go from not knowing who he wanted to be, to being exactly who he wanted to be."
Now Trevor is the managing director of Kennedy Elliott, an organisation that provides care and accommodation for young people between the ages of 11 and 25.
Trevor was thrilled to see the 'brilliant' new John Lewis ad, which he believes will encourage more people to consider becoming foster carers themselves.
Reflecting on the story at the heart of the ad, he continued: "Often a lot of the children just want to see familiarity. They want people to take time and understand what they enjoy doing and whether that foster carer meant it on purpose or not.
"It just goes to show that you should try and understand these children before they come into your care, and understand what they like.
"That moment when the girl walked to the door is the scariest time of a child's life. They don't know what they're walking into, and it's just such a great advert because it shows that the first thing she saw was that skateboard, and thought 'I'm going to relax now because you like what I like.
"'We're going to get along'. It's that first impression that's so important, and I think it's a great advert."
There is currently a severe foster carer shortage in the UK, with the ongoing cost-of-living crisis further deterring potential candidates. Meanwhile, many long-term foster parents have sadly had to move away from their roles because of financial difficulties.
Trevor believes the John Lewis advert will have 'a huge impact' in this regard, adding: "In many ways, I think it's going to make more people to want to become foster carers because it's such a warming advert. At this time of the year, you think Christmas, you want children to have a safe home, a warm home. I think it's brilliant, to be honest."
Offering advice to anyone now considering fostering, Trevor said: "I think we all have the capacity to care for each other and I think we all have a greater capacity to care for children. So if you've got a spare bedroom and you want to create a warm, caring environment, you want to help children, you want to help the system, society.
"I think we all should be doing some form of giving back and always putting children first, because often they get left behind. A lot of local authorities offer introductory training and taster sessions to see what it involves, and then you get foster carers coming in to give advice.
"Make the step, find out if it's something you want to do. I don't regret it. In fact, it's probably changed my whole concept of life. I don't have children yet, but if I do one day have children, it's going to change the way in which I parent. So there are so many benefits to fostering, from my perspective."
Do you have a fostering-related story to share? Email us at julia.banim@reachplc.com
