Parenting experience is helpful but not essential. You will need plenty of patience, enthusiasm, often humour and always kindness.

You need to be adaptable and need to demonstrate an understanding of the complex needs of the children and young people who are looked after.

Commitment to children and young people is key – stickability.

Our fostering family includes foster carers with a wide range of experiences and situations, including a number of single carers. We will talk to you about your experience of caring for children. The important factor is that you have friends and family to support you.

We’re proud to support LGBTQ+ individuals and couples wanting to foster.

We are a New Family Social member and take pride in making sure every individual or family going through the fostering process with us is treated equally and with respect.

There is no upper age limit for fostering but you do need to be at least 21 years old.
Foster carers need to have reasonable health and have a positive outlook. The assessment will look at your individual skills and situation.

Fostering involves the whole family and it is important that you talk to your children, whether living with you or not, and ask their views. Becoming a foster carer means sharing your home and family life with children or young people who have had very different life experiences.

If you decide to continue with your interest in fostering, the home visit by a social worker will include a discussion with your family.

Foster carers sometimes need to transport children and young people to contact sessions with their birth families and appointments, plus travel to meetings about the child or young person. It would be challenging to do this without a car.

We welcome applications from people of all faiths and religions and those without.

Faith can be a very positive factor meaning people have strong support networks. It is important that you can promote equality and diversity, and think about whether any strong beliefs may conflict with fostering and supporting children or young people in whatever situation they may be in.

We welcome applications from people already approved to foster with another agency. You would have to be reassessed but this should be fairly straightforward as you will have all your experience in fostering. Visit our transfer page if you’d like to transfer to fostering with us.

Please note that carers are not able to foster with more than one agency at a time.

Foster care, or fostering, is the term used to describe an approved foster carer offering a home to a child or young person who can’t live with their own family.

Sometimes a child or young person will stay for a very short time before returning to their family, others may need to live with a foster family for a long time.

Some children and young people may have regular contact with other members of their family, even if they cannot live with them.

There are different types of fostering, depending on the child and their situation. A foster child may stay with you for just a weekend or over a number of years – we work hard to match the child to the right foster carer. Below are some of the ways you could foster.

Short term fostering

Short term fostering is when a foster family provides care for a child until the decision is made by the local authority about the child’s long-term care. These placements can last for days, weeks or months.

Long-term fostering

Long-term placements may be suitable for children or young people for whom adoption is not an option. In this situation, the foster carer cares for a child or young person as a member of their family up to, and into, adult independence.

Emergency / unplanned placements 

These placements happen where a child or young person needs somewhere to stay at short notice. This could be for a few nights or longer, depending on the circumstances. Placements are provided at short notice and our fostering service offers a 24-hour emergency response service to support such requests from placing authorities.

Family group placements

Family group placements are for siblings who are placed together in foster care. We advocate keeping family groups together within a family environment, unless it is deemed inappropriate by the placing authority. We specialise in caring for family groups and provide additional support to foster carers to assist them in the task.

Short break / respite fostering

Short break – sometimes known as respite – placements are provided to give families a break or offer additional support. This could be for a child’s birth family or for a foster carer and can be anything from an overnight stay to a couple of weeks.

Foster carers receive a weekly allowance to cover the costs of caring for a child. They also receive a fee for their skills, training and experience. The allowance amount varies based on the child’s age, the foster carer’s experience, and the type of fostering. 

Some foster carers can also receive additional payments for birthdays, holidays, and other specific needs of the child.

If you want to find out more about fostering allowances, get in touch. We’re happy to answer your financial questions, as well as any other fostering queries you have.

Foster carers are subject to the same Council Tax rules as any other household in the UK. However, there are specific considerations and exemptions that could potentially apply to foster carers. These may result in council tax reductions or even free council tax for foster carers in certain areas.

Foster carers might be eligible for discounts or exemptions, pending an analysis of their individual circumstances. Here are some possible discounts that are worth considering:

Single Person Discount

If you are a single person fostering a child, you may be eligible for the single person discount, which reduces your Council Tax bill by 25%.

Second Adult Rebate

If another adult lives with you, as long as they are currently on a low income, you might be eligible for a second adult rebate.

Council Tax Reduction

Foster carers on a low income might also qualify for Council Tax Reduction, a significant means-tested benefit that can lower or eliminate the amount of Council Tax you have to pay.

Not necessarily. It is important that you can commit sufficient time to the child or young person, including attending meetings and taking them to contact sessions or appointments, and arrangements for school holidays. Some foster carers balance part-time work with fostering.

If you currently claim welfare benefits, it is likely you will be able to continue while fostering. Foster carer allowances may be disregarded when calculating welfare benefits. We can assist with advice and you can also contact The Fostering Network (www.thefosteringnetwork.org.uk).

Foster carers often take children and young people to contact sessions with birth parents or siblings. Parents and wider family are important to children and young people who are looked after, so it is important that foster carers encourage contact where appropriate. We will support you to prepare for this.

Step 1. Initial contact

It all begins by making contact with our friendly enquiries officer by telephone on 0800 05 222 50 or through our online registration form

The enquiries officer will have an informal discussion with you and we will then send you our comprehensive fostering guide or you can order free copy online here.

Step 2. Home visit

We will make arrangements to visit you in your own home to discuss fostering in detail.

Step 3. Introductory training

The assessment process begins with attendance to our ‘Skills to Foster’ training. This usually takes place over two days. If you have a partner, you both will need to attend the training.

This will help you gain a clear understanding of fostering before you decide to confirm, and will cover:

• What foster care involves
• Identity and life chances
• Safer caring
• Working with others
• Understanding and caring for children and young people
• Transitions

You will also have the opportunity to speak directly with one of our foster carers who can talk you through their experience of fostering with the Together Trust.

Step 4. Assessment process

Following the training if you and the Together Trust feel fostering is right for you, we will start the assessment and undertake statutory checks and personal references.

A qualified social worker will undertake an assessment report with you at your home. The social worker will also meet with your personal referees, members of your household and any grown up children you have living away from home. As part of our safer recruitment we will also undertake background checks.

Assessment may sound daunting but remember we are here to help you. Once the assessment is complete and signed by you it will go to the fostering panel.

Step 5. Fostering panel and agency decision maker

The panel comprises people with a wide range of professional expertise and personal experience. They are responsible for making a recommendation as to whether you are suitable to be a foster carer.

Step 6. You are approved!

Welcome to the Together Trust fostering family!

We are delighted to have you join us in making a real difference to the lives of children and young people.

Assessments start with taking up references with statutory organisations and police checks. Our very experienced social workers will support you through every step of the way and will be able to answer all of your questions. We aim to complete assessments within four to six months.

If you are separated, divorced or ended a relationship where you had lived with a partner we will need to contact them. This is part of the assessment to ask if they have any concerns about your suitability to foster.

Please do not worry as we do realise that not all relationships end amicably, we will take this into consideration. There are a few, exceptional situations to this check being made, and if you are concerned about it please discuss with the social worker who visits you at home.

All placements are considered closely to ensure that children and young people are matched with foster carers whose skills and experience can meet their needs. This is done using a comprehensive matching form which identifies strengths, as well as additional support and/or training that may be required.

We have a referrals and admissions coordinator, who is the first point of contact for enquiries about placement choices. They are supported by a duty social worker and liaise closely with supervising social workers in the fostering team, foster carers and referring/ placing authorities. This helps to ensure the best possible match for each child, young person and the foster carers.

We recognise that all children and young people have diverse needs, and that’s why we’re always looking for foster carers with a range of skills to ensure the best matches are made.

We welcome applications from people already approved to foster with another agency. You would have to be reassessed but this should be fairly straightforward as you will have all your experience in fostering. Visit our transfer page if you’d like to transfer to fostering with us.

Please note that carers are not able to foster with more than one agency at a time.