Fostering is providing a caring and safe environment in your home for children and young people.

Foster children and young people may be placed with foster carers singly, or in groups of brothers and sisters. Some foster children have disabilities; some foster children have challenging behaviour.

Foster children need foster carers for a variety of reasons:

• A foster child may need to live away from home for a short time whilst social workers help their family to sort themselves out.
• A foster child's parents may have drug or alcohol problems affecting their parenting ability.
• A foster child's parents may be ill or have mental health problems.
• A foster child may have been neglected or physically or sexually abused and cannot remain in the family home.
• A foster child may have been remanded into the care of a local authority by a court.
• Foster children may be unaccompanied refugees or asylum seekers.
• A foster child's family may need a break from being carers of disabled children.

Foster carers work as part of a professional fostering team

• to provide a high level of quality foster care for children and young people
• to promote contact between foster children and their families
• to help to reunite foster children with their families, where appropriate.

Depending on the type of foster placement, the foster children may be with you for a few days, months, or sometimes longer.

If you are interested in learning more about the complete process to becoming a career foster carer then click here.