Isabel Webster says what you’re thinking
TIME FOR CHANGE
Often I am asked who I’ve most enjoyed interviewing in my nearly 20 years in broadcasting. They want me to talk about David Beckham, Tim Peake or maybe even Liz Truss – ‘Is she really as mad as she seems?’ But the truth is, my favourite interviews are the ones that move me. Sometimes these people are unknown but with incredible stories to tell. Recently, I was lucky enough to sit down on GB News Breakfast with 63-year-old Fatima Whitbread MBE. She is, of course, famous for lots of reasons: more recently for winning BBC Sports Personality of the Year’s 2023 Helen Rollason Award, which is given for achievement in the face of adversity.
Her story is incredible. Fatima was abandoned as a baby and left to die in an empty flat. She was severely malnourished and once well enough to leave hospital spent the next 14 years of her life in children’s homes. Despite an unfathomably difficult start in life, Fatima has achieved hard-earned success as an athlete and later as a public figure.
Now retired she speaks up, passionately, for the more than 100,000 children and young people currently in care across the UK. But, she warned me that sadly the situation in care is worsening as some councils are reporting an increase in children just as their budgets are really struggling.
Worst of all, where there are innocent children seeking much-needed love and affection there are also predators who exploit them. This breaks my heart.
Life after care is also a challenge. A quarter of homeless people and almost 25% of the adult prison population have been in the care system. It’s clear, then, that we must do more to help launch the lives of these young people. Care leavers need more support than their peers, and employers must invest in them to make a lifelong positive difference. Kids in care could hardly have a better ambassador than Fatima. As you read this, she will be making her way to Everest Base Camp to raise awareness and funds. I wish her well – I have no doubt she’ll succeed.
If you’d like to donate to Fatima’s UK Campaign, go to justgiving.com and search ‘Fatima Whitbread’.
