51²èÂ¥

Or call us today to speak to a Fostering Recruitment Officer on 0800 028 2158.

An information pack can be downloaded or emailed to you. Once you have read the information pack and considered all the information, you can contact our Recruitment Support Officer to have an ‘initial enquiry’ taken.

This will then be passed to a social worker who will call you to arrange the Initial Home Visit.

If you have any questions we will be able to answer them for you.

After the initial enquiry has been completed, a social worker will contact you to arrange to visit you (and your partner if relevant) in your own home. This will provide the opportunity to further explore your personal circumstances in privacy and to talk about the role of fostering.

If fostering is right for you

If both you and the social worker agree that fostering could be right for you, you will then be invited to attend a preparation training course. We hold these monthly, alternating weekday, evening and weekend courses.

Once you have attended the Preparation Course and managers believe you might be suitable, a formal application form will be emailed or posted to you at this stage to complete and return.

Assessment stage one

Once you submit your formal application form, Stage One can begin. 

We will take up a number of statutory checks and references, including, for example:

• Disclosure and Barring Service which is a criminal background check
• personal references, from family members and non-family members
• employers’ references

We will request your agreement to undertake a fostering medical, which is completed by your GP. 

This is simply to ensure that you are medically fit enough to cope with the challenges of fostering. Your application can, however, be stopped at any point during Stage One, should the statutory checks reveal information that we consider would make you unsuitable to foster.

Assessment stage two

Your social worker will meet with you throughout this period. During this time the social worker:

• gets to know you and your family
• spends time helping you think about what strengths you could bring to caring for a looked after child or young person
• your family background
• your current availability

You will be asked to provide information about: 

• your education
• employment history
• leisure interests
• past relationships
• experience of caring for children

Remember, the whole process is focused on finding the right homes for the children and young people who need to be looked after, so developing an understanding of the kinds of children and young people you could support is very important.

The process of preparation and assessment of prospective foster carers is thorough. This is to determine whether applicants are suitable to foster. 

During this stage we will have to ask some very detailed and personal questions, so we ask you to be as relaxed, open and honest with us as possible.

Completion of the assessment

On completion of the assessment, it is written up into a report called the Prospective Foster Carers’ Report (Form F), which is taken to 51²èÂ¥ Fostering Panel.

You will have the opportunity to read and comment upon the report.

The final stage: the fostering panel

You will be invited to attend the panel meeting with your social worker. All panel members will have read your assessment and will have some questions to ask you. You will also have the opportunity to ask any questions that you may have.

The panel will make a recommendation regarding your approval. This will be passed to a Agency Decision Maker, who decides whether or not to accept the recommendation based on all of the reports and minutes of the panel meeting.

Once approved

Following approval you will be asked to sign the Foster Carer Agreement.

This sets out what you can expect from the Fostering Service in supervising and supporting you, and our expectations of you and how we work together.

You are then ready to foster.

The Fostering Service will look at matching you with a child and young person depending on your type of approval,the needs of the child and young person and your particular strengths.

During the early stage of the process

Occasionally applicants will be advised that the Fostering Service believes they are unlikely to be recommended as suitable to foster a child or young person. If this is the case, we will provide you with a clear written explanation of the reasons why you are unable to complete

Stage Two. An applicant cannot appeal this decision. However, if you are unhappy with the way your application has been handled, representation can be made through the complaints process. The complaints process cannot, however, consider whether you are suitable to foster or not.

Following attendance at Fostering Panel

Should you not agree with the decision of the Agency, you have the opportunity to appeal and have your case reviewed either by the Fostering Service or by the Independent Review Mechanism (IRM). This is operated by the British Association for Adoption and Fostering (CoramBAAF), on behalf of the Department for Education.

Whilst it cannot overturn the Agency’s decision, it can make a recommendation to the Agency on your suitability to be approved as a foster carer. The Agency will take that recommendation into consideration when making its final decision.