Becoming a carer

Anyone who is genuinely interested in children and their welfare, and can provide care and stability for vulnerable children, can become a foster carer. It is important you have time, patience and energy as well as the physical space in your house to comfortably accommodate a foster child. Fostering is both challenging and rewarding. We will work closely with you to be sure that fostering is right for you. We are committed to recruiting carers from diverse racial, cultural and religious backgrounds to meet the diverse needs of foster children. We welcome enquiries and applications from all members of the community.

We must ensure that children who have experienced neglect or abuse can be assured a high standard of foster care. We therefore strive to provide a service of excellence which exceeds the requirements of the National Standards for Foster Care.

We support our foster carers to provide high-quality care for children:

To provide clean, safe and comfortable accommodation.
To support and promote children's educational attainment.
To provide nurturing that promotes health and general development.
To protect children from abuse.
To promote the development of independence and skills appropriate to the child's age.
To set appropriate boundaries and manage children's behaviour effectively.
To listen to children, empower them and advocate on their behalf as necessary.
To have good communication skills and an ability to work as part of a team.
To keep records on the children placed and to contribute to the planning for their future.
To participate in supervision meetings, ongoing training and other relevant meetings concerning the foster child.
To keep information confidential.
To work within our diversity policy and promote equality in respect of disability, sexual orientation, religion and culture.
To encourage children in maintaining contact with their family, where appropriate.

Requirements

Accommodation

It does not matter whether you own or rent your home but it is important that children being fostered by you are settled and not likely to have to move at short notice. If you live in council or housing association accommodation,we are required to check your tenancy agreement. Your home will need to be spacious enough to comfortably accommodate everyone including any proposed foster children. Any child placed with foster carers should have a bedroom of their own except in some circumstances where they may share a room if they are siblings of the same gender, or are under five years.

Experience with children

Having your own children can help you gain important experience but childcare experience gained through work or voluntary help is also relevant. If you have not had children of your own, you can be a successful foster carer. Life experiences, personal qualities and the potential to safely care for children are also important. You will receive ongoing support and training to help you effectively care for the children placed with you.

Allowances

We pay a range of allowances to cover the costs of caring for any child placed with our foster carers. The allowance paid will depend on the age of the child and any special needs they may have. The payment covers the expenses for food, clothes, heating and lighting, pocket money, dinner money, leisure, social activities etc. Additional allowances are paid for the child's birthdays, holiday and religious festivals. Other expenses may be payable to ensure you are compensated for the full costs of caring for a child for us. The allowances are based on the rates recommended by Fostering Network and are reviewed annually. As a carer you can receive an allowance of up to £280 per week per child.

Fitness

The Fostering Regulations (2002) require we ensure that our foster carers are both physically and mentally fit to care for children. You will need to have a medical with your GP which we will pay for. This to ensure that you are in good health and are able to manage the physical and emotional demands of caring for children. Having a specific disability or medical condition will not necessarily preclude you from fostering. We will take advice from your doctor and our Medical Advisor on your health and the possible implications for fostering.

Employment

It is important that as a foster carer you are available to care for children and can meet their varied needs, including taking them to school, attending meetings and other appointments as necessary. Our foster carers play an important part in our team and make valuable contributions to the planning for children in their care. It is therefore crucial as a foster carer you are available and committed to the children in your care. For younger children who are not of school age you will need to be fully committed to fostering and not working outside the home. We require that the primary foster carer for a child under 11 is available during the day to meet the child's needs.

For older children, you may work part- time hours but will need to be available for meetings and appointments. You also need to be available during school holidays to care for your foster child. It is important that alternative care arrangements are not made for your foster children on a regular basis, eg the use of childminders or friends. Having a job does not necessarily preclude you from being considered for fostering. If you work from home, are self-employed or have flexible working arrangements, your application will also be considered.

There are various foster care schemes that may be more suitable for your circumstances eg respite care, supported lodgings for 16-17 year olds or the Take-a-Break scheme for disabled children.

Age limits

By law there are no age limits for fostering. However, if you will need to be mature enough to work with the complex problems that children needing foster care are likely to have, as well as being fit enough. Applicants wishing to care for children under 12 should be aged 21 or over. To be considered to care for teenagers, you need to be 25 years old. Applicants over 65 will be considered on an individual basis and subject to satisfactory health check.

Difference between fostering and adoption

Foster carers look after a child on our behalf for anything from a few days to several years. Parental responsibility for children placed in foster care either remains with the parents or is shared with us. When a child is adopted, the child remains with the adopter on a permanent basis and they become the child's legal parent.

Income tax and benefits

As a foster carer you receive very generous tax allowances on income solely derived from fostering. You do not pay tax on income from fostering up to a maximum of £10,000 a year, plus there is an additional allowance for each foster child. Fostering allowances are paid whether you are receiving state benefits or not. You can receive more specific information on taxation from the Inland Revenue to consider your personal circumstance further. Alternatively, contact The Fostering Network on 0207 2611884.

For more information call 01296 382555 or email fostering@buckscc.gov.uk

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