Fostering

Are you interested in Fostering?
A loving, caring home is one of the most important influences in the life of a child.  Sadly, this can only be a dream for many children. But every day foster carers make that dream come true for children who, through no fault of their own, don’t have a settled home life. The city has dozens of children who need foster carers, sometimes long-term, sometimes just overnight.

Could I be a foster carer?
Anyone who is over 21 can apply.  You don’t have to have a big house, be in employment, be a couple, or have children of your own. It doesn’t matter if you are married, divorced, single, in a same sex relationship or living with your partner.

Who do we need?
We need a range of carers for different age groups of children – pre-school children, school age, and particularly teenagers aged 11-16.  We need carers for sibling groups so that they can stay together and we also need carers from different ethnic groups.

Foster carers cover a range of circumstances:

• short term - which can be anything from overnight to several months;
• long term - when children are unable to return to live with their family but may want to remain in touch with them. You will be including a child as a complete member of your family. You will be caring for them throughout their childhood and helping them gain the skills they need to eventually leave home;
• short break / part time - this can be for a disabled child to give their family a break or to provide a break for full time foster carers. You might have a child stay with you for a few hours each week or a weekend each month or maybe just a week. We also need foster carers who can provide care during weekends and school holidays for children returning from residential school.

Want to know more?
If you want to know more you will be sent an information pack and invited to an information meeting at Heron Cross House in Fenton.

If you go ahead you and your family you will be given training and a home assessment will be made by a fostering social worker. You will be provided with on-going support to help you develop your fostering skills. You will also receive financial support for each child you foster.

We know you will also have some basic questions to ask and hope our answers will add to your understanding about fostering.  The web pages are split into four sections to help you understand more about fostering:

• Introduction
• Becoming a foster carer
• Types of fostering
• Who's who in fostering

The sections are listed on the left hand side of this page. Click on each one to find out more.