“In the Right Place, At the Right Time” – a song of a situation – where we’re at today

A duet for two singers with opposing views on the children’s residential care today

Verse 1 — Singer A (Public Sector Voice)

We’re standing in the wreckage of a system built on hope,
But every year the cracks get wider, every child left to cope.
They tell us “hold the line,” but the line’s already torn,
And we’re placing kids in shadows where no safety can be sworn.

Verse 1 — Singer B (Provider Voice)

You say we’re part of the problem, but we stepped in when you stepped back.
We built the homes you couldn’t fund, filled the spaces where you lack.
Don’t paint us as the villains when the truth is plain to see —
You needed someone, anyone, and that someone turned out to be me.

Chorus — Together (Tension, Not Harmony)

Who’s to blame when the system breaks?
Who pays the price for the choices made?
Children waiting, futures fading —
All we do is trade the blame.
But every child deserves a home,
Not a place that’s built on chance.
We keep arguing in circles
While the years slip through our hands.

Verse 2 — Singer A

Leadership’s a whisper when it should be a roar,
We’ve waited for direction but they’re still “exploring more.”
Unregistered, unsafe — how did danger become routine?
How did “temporary” turn to months for kids we’ve never truly seen?

Verse 2 — Singer B

You talk about the dangers, but you know what’s really true —
It’s scarcity, not apathy, that’s pushing kids to you.
We’d build the right provision if the barriers weren’t so high,
But planning blocks and capital shocks keep every good idea dry.

Bridge — Call and Response

A: Foster carers disappearing, numbers falling year by year.
B: And still you cut the budgets, then ask us to volunteer.
A: Competition drives the prices up, we’re drowning in the cost.
B: But without a stable market, think of all the lives you’d lose, not lost.
A: We need a national strategy, a vision that’s sincere.
B: Then work with us, not against us — we’re already standing here.

Chorus — Together (More Unified, But Still Uneasy)

Who’s to blame when the system breaks?
Who pays the price for the choices made?
Children waiting, futures fading —
We can’t let this stay the same.
If every child deserves a home,
Then we owe them more than talk.
Let’s build a future worthy
Of the path they have to walk.

Final Verse — Shared (Two Perspectives, One Truth)

A: We need leadership with courage.
B: We need partnership with trust.
A: We need homes built on compassion.
B: Not on profit — but on what’s just.
Together:
If we put the children first, not the politics or fear,
Then maybe we can build a system worthy of the ones we hold most dear.