Bedrooms

Children in foster care must have their own room so creating space for this is important. Part of the assessment will be to look at your accommodation and you will need a spare bedroom when the child is ready to move in.

There is one exception to this if the child you are fostering is a baby under the age of two. In this situation they are able to sleep within the foster carers bedroom until they reach two years old as a maximum age.

Accommodation

You can foster whether you are renting or own your own home. If you are living in a rental property you need to provide permission from the property owner that they agree for you to foster in their property.

During the assessment, a member of the team will visit you to check suitability and safety of your property.

Age and marital status

The youngest age which you can foster is 21. This is a statutory requirement within the Fostering Regulations. There is no upper age limit, you are required to complete a medical and receive a declaration of ‘fit to foster’ to be considered suitable.

Smoking

Worcestershire Fostering policy currently states that children under 5 years old or a child of any age with a disability, heart disease, glue ear or respiratory problems such as asthma will not be matched with a foster carer who smokes or vapes.

Guidelines state that an individual cannot be classed as a non-smoker until they have been given-up for a minimum of 12 months.

Children older than 5 can be placed in smoking or vaping households, but foster carers are required to smoke outside only.

Working

A carer would need to be available for school age children if they are ill and during school holidays. Foster carers will need to participate in meetings with social workers, attend training for their own development as well as other groups and events for additional support and networking opportunities.

These typically take place during normal working hours, therefore, whilst many foster carers continue to work part time, a full-time job would require you to have a flexible employer who understands your commitment to fostering. 

Buddy fostering maybe compatible with a full-time working arrangement and we can explore this further at enquiry stages. 

Criminal convictions

People with minor convictions can foster, but this depends on the seriousness of the offence, how long ago the crime was committed and how you have lived your life since.

People with convictions for violent or sexual offences against children will not be considered as foster carers.

Any person over 18 registered as living at a foster carers address is required to complete a DBS check as per statutory fostering regulations.

You can withdraw from the assessment process at any point if you decide fostering is not for you or your family. 

You can talk through any concerns you have with your fostering assessing social worker. Sometimes you may want to take some time to think things over before you progress to the next stage.

The assessment process should be an open and honest discussion, so you should feel comfortable asking your social worker questions throughout.