The first thing to remember is there are no silly questions. The only silly question is one which isn’t asked.
The second thing to remember is not every question has an answer, particularly when dealing with the sort of emotional and challenging situation you currently find yourself in.
So don’t hold back. We can’t promise to answer everything, but we do promise to try our hardest, and share with you the things we’ve learned.
And hopefully you find you can share with us too.
You don’t have to be in a relationship to become a foster carer. Stability is important as is offering a safe and supportive home. You may need more support from your family to help out to make sure the needs of the young person.
You do not have to be heterosexual to foster. Your sexual orientation is not important to us when we are assessing your ability to provide a safe and loving home to a child or young person. Every looked after child is different, so there needs to be diversity among the foster carer community too.
You don’t need to drive to be able to foster, but you would need to consider the needs of the child and getting them to and from school or any supervisions with their birth family. You may need to use public transport or ask your family or friends for support.
Foster carers do not need to own their own home. Whether you have a mortgage, or are a private or social housing tenant it doesn’t affect your ability to give a young person a safe, secure and loving place to call home. As long as you have a spare bedroom and you can offer a safe and secure loving home environment for a child or young person then you can foster.
As long as you are over 21 and have a spare room in your home you can apply to be a foster carer. This could be in a home you own, pay a mortgage for or one you rent.
Having pets does not prevent you from fostering, in fact they can be an asset to a foster family. However, every animal is different and your pets will be assessed as part of the process of becoming a foster carer, taking into account factors such as their temperament and behaviour.
Most of our foster carers work, you would have to consider the needs of the children in your care and if you would be able to balance work and getting them to school, after school clubs or meeting at the weekends or evenings. We understand that not everyone can afford to foster so working is something that would ensure your financial security.
As long as you can provide a young person a safe, secure and happy home then your disability should not stand in your way of this. When you start your assessment you will have a full medical to ensure you are able to support the needs of any child or young person in your care.
Not having children wouldn’t stop you becoming a foster carer. When we sit down with you during your assessment we will discuss all the experience you have had with children. This could be you have looked after children within your family or taken part in voluntary work involving children.
There is no upper age limit for foster carers and a lot of our existing carers are retired and well into their 70’s. Being healthy, fit and active will enable you to enjoy the challenges of fostering. Being a foster carer is not easy, but can make a huge difference to the lives of the children who need it.
