Becoming a
Foster Carer
How to Start Your Journey
One of the most rewarding things you can make in life is a difference. As a Foster Carer with Progress, you’ll be doing that every day. You don’t need any particular qualifications or experience to apply. The most important things you can possess are patience and the desire to change a young person’s life for the better.
If you have those, becoming a Foster Carer isn’t as complicated as you might think. We’ve broken the process down into six simple steps.
The 6 steps to becoming a foster carer
STEP 01
Enquiry & Visit Request
Use our enquiry form to contact us. Once we’ve received your enquiry we’ll send you an information pack, and a member of the Progress team will contact you to discuss the process.
STEP 02
Home Visit
We’ll pay you a visit to learn more about you, your family and your home. It’s also an opportunity for you to ask us questions in person. If you’re happy to proceed, we’ll complete the paperwork required to get the process started.
STEP 03
Skills to Foster & Form F
You’ll be invited to attend a mandatory Skills to Foster training course that provides important information and will give you an insight into what to expect as a foster carer. Once you’ve successfully completed the course, you’ll be allocated a Social Worker who will begin your Form F Assessment. This is an in-depth information-gathering process that will be submitted to an independent Fostering Panel.
STEP 04
Fostering Panel
Along with your Social Worker, you’ll be invited to attend the Fostering Panel, who will assess your suitability and make a recommendation of your approval.
STEP 05
Progress Induction
Once approved by the panel, you’ll be allocated a Supervising Social Worker. You will then undertake an induction to provide you with the resources available to begin your role as a Foster Carer with Progress.
STEP 06
Match Placement
Progress will notify all the relevant Local Authorities that you are available to foster. We’ll then work closely with you to match your first placement.
Progress provides a professional career path with full training and support to build your Fostering skills and continue your development in a range of areas.
Interested in becoming a foster carer?
“It’s been brilliant, you don’t realise that they are ticking things off as you go along”
Trina Monington-Tennant
Fostering FAQ's
If you’re thinking about becoming a Foster Carer. you’re likely to have lots of questions. To help you, we’ve created a list of our most frequently asked questions below – you can click on each question to open it and find out more information. To see more, visit our dedicated Fostering FAQs page.
A ‘specialist foster carer’ is a term used to describe someone who cares for a child with one or more of the following issues:
- Learning disabilities, Physical disabilities and other medical conditions
- Children with poor mental health
- Children who are vulnerable to sexual exploitation
- Children who display emotional and behavioural difficulties
Progress welcomes professionals from the health and social care sector who can offer specialist care because of their professional experience.
Many of our current specialist foster carers did not have the skills and experience initially. Progress will offer the right training programmes and support to enable you to improve and widen your skills so that you can offer specialist care.
The length of the assessment is completely dependent on you and how flexible you can be in terms of attending the initial training course and attending appointments with your designated social worker. We normally suggest around 6 months from enquiry through to panel but it can take up to 8 months.
Yes. Progress pay a very competitive package for each child placed with you. The amount varies dependent on the age and skills required for each child. Specialist care attracts a higher reward due to the additional demands of the child. Children who have additional needs also have allocated support packages in addition to their monthly maintenance payment.
This will depend on your individual circumstances, the type of fostering you wish to consider and the flexibility your employment can offer. Specialist foster care requires at least one full-time carer at home. All types of foster care require you to transport a child to and from school and to attend various meetings with professionals. If you’re unsure, contact us for a more in-depth discussion.
As a foster carer, you are self-employed. Foster carers benefit from generous tax relief. During the assessment process, you would still be entitled to benefits but would need to continue looking for employment if this is a requirement of the job-centre.
No. The only requirement for becoming a foster carer is that you have a spare bedroom. However, if you are renting a property we require written permission from your landlord giving permission to foster in their property.
It is not essential to have parenting skills prior to becoming a foster carer. However, knowledge and experience of looking after children will need to be proven during the assessment process and this can be evidenced if you have previously worked with children or have a wide range of experience in caring for family members. Progress can also offer extensive training in order for you to up-skill in areas that may be required.
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