What is foster care?

Click here to apply online to become a Fostercarer

Foster care provides family life for children and young people who are unable to live with their own parents. In situations when children need to be looked after outside their own families, Local Authority social workers generally prefer to place them in foster care rather than children’s homes.

Girl with cat

Foster care provides the opportunity for a child to be cared for as an individual and to develop a bond with adults. It can assist young people to develop into adults who can look after themselves, make positive relationships and care safely for children of their own when that time arrives.

Fostercare professionals

Fostering is regulated by the Children Act 1989 and the Fostering Services Regulations 2002. There are National Minimum Standards for foster care which all fostering agencies are inspected against.

child painting with hands

The law relating to looked after children is continually changing, and the role of the foster carer is developing so that foster carers are recognised as part of a professional team working towards improved outcomes for children.

Hillcrest Fostercare achieved overall outstanding in our most recent Ofsted Report. To read further details  please click here

What do foster carers do?

Foster carer tasks

  • To provide safe, warm nurturing care
  • To provide appropriate food, clothing and standards of hygiene
  • To encourage school attendance and achievement through support at home
  • To promote contact with the child’s own family (unless contact is forbidden) and welcome family visits if requested by the Local Authority
  • To ensure children receive good health care and attend appointments for medical, dental and optical treatment as well as therapy etc
  • To set appropriate boundaries on behaviour and encourage self control.
  • To use praise and encouragement to promote improvements in behaviour and self esteem
  • To provide opportunities for children to pursue hobbies and learn new skills
  • To attend meetings to plan for the child, review progress etc
  • To ensure individual time is available for children to talk about problems and worries
  • To keep accurate written records on all aspects of the child’s life in the foster home
  • To attend support groups and on-going training to develop fostering skills
  • To liaise closely with the child’s social worker, ensuring information is passed on
  • To prepare children to move on from the foster home, whether they return to their own family, are placed in a permanent substitute family or live independently as a young adult

This list is not exhaustive but is designed to indicate the range of tasks involved in fostering.