Whatever your age or personal circumstances - you can do it. As long as you have the room in your home to look after a child, it doesn't matter whether you own a house, rent a flat or receive housing benefit. What matters most is that you are able to help them feel comfortable with their surroundings and give them a sense of their true potential. You must also be able to demonstrate a mature, responsible attitude and have the skills and qualities needed to care for children separated from their own families.

Process
Your six month journey

If you've decided that foster caring is definitely for you, there are a number of steps that need to be taken. And Cheshire County Council promise that the entire process from the time you return your application form to being approved as a foster carer will take no longer than six months.

Vulnerable children and young people will be coming to live in your home. For this reason you'll be asked to go through a process of preparation, during which your abilities as a potential foster carer will be assessed. You'll need to show that you have the skills required to care for other people's children and that you understand how it feels for children to be separated from their own families.

The next steps

1. You will be visited by a social worker who will have initial discussions with you about foster care. They'll give you details of the assessment process.
2. They'll ask you to fill in a detailed application form about yourself and other members of your household. This form gives the council permission to carry out police and other checks.
3. The council will carry out police checks to make sure that you've not committed any offences that automatically disqualify you from fostering. They'll ask for proof of your identity (like a passport, birth or marriage certificate) and will ask for you to have a health check to show you don't have any major health problems.
4. You'll be invited to attend pre-approval training, where you'll learn more about what's involved with fostering. This is also a chance to meet other people who are going through the process, and talk to experienced foster carers. You'll also meet the social worker who'll be carrying out your personal assessment.
5. The social worker will explain the skills and qualities that foster carers need. They'll discuss how you can demonstrate your skills through practical examples of activities you're already involved in, or through detailed conversations. They may also ask you to write something down or provide other evidence.
6. The social worker will arrange regular appointments to meet with you and during these sessions, you'll cover a range of subjects relating to the needs of children who require fostering. You'll discuss with the social worker the numbers and ages of children you could foster.
7. The council takes up your personal and employer reference.
8. All the information is pulled together by the social worker who then writes a report outlining your skills, your future training needs and areas where perhaps you need more help. You'll see the social worker's report and if you disagree with it, you can make your own comments in writing.
9. The social worker then presents the report to the fostering panel. You will be invited to meet some members of the fostering panel.
10. The panel either approves or does not approve you as a foster carer. If you're not approved the social worker will discuss the reasons with you and the chair of the panel will write to you. Sometimes it's possible to re-apply in the future.
    
    If you're approved, you'll be given further information about training opportunities and you're given the name of your social worker who will support you as a carer.
11. A child or young person is placed with you. Their age and the length of their stay depends on the type of fostering you're approved for.
12. You'll need to be re-approved every year. Your approval is also reviewed when there's significant change in your circumstances e.g. If you move house.

Six months may seem like a long time, but if you take all the right steps and full advantage of the help and support that we have to offer, you will eventually succeed. We know you can do it so embark upon your journey of a lifetime - the rewards make the effort worthwhile.

top

Support and Training

We understand that caring for children can be a demanding role and that's why at Cheshire County Council, we supply you with a wide range of support, aimed to help you provide a high standard of care for the children you look after and develop new, personal skills enabling you to undertake the tasks we ask of you.

Just as each child placed has their own social worker, every foster carer has a specialist social worker to support them too. And if you feel it's necessary, you can also have access to other professionals to help you look after a child e.g. a psychologist.

In Cheshire we encourage foster carers to make use of support groups. These offer the opportunity to meet with other carers and share ideas and concerns. You can also be put in touch with other experienced carers if you wish.

If you want advice or the opportunity to share concerns outside normal working hours, a carer support line staffed by other carers or social workers is available each evening or weekend. And if you occasionally need a break from looking after children, either for a couple of hours, a weekend or a week, we'll provide respite support or care if it's needed.

Every carer receives pre-approval training during their assessment period. This is designed to provide prospective foster carers with the knowledge and information that they require to gain a more realistic picture of what's involved in caring for children in care. Pre-approval training follows key modules and it's necessary for ALL prospective carers to complete the course before they are approved as foster carers.

Induction training offers newly approved foster carers the opportunity to meet with key personnel, including experienced foster carers within Cheshire. It also provides new carers with information regarding services available, including out of hours support and training opportunities.

During the first two years of fostering, you're expected to attend a number of other core training courses designed to support your work. You will have a personal development plans which detail your skills and lists the training that you and the council believe you would benefit from to improve your knowledge and skills.

If you wish to, you could undertake a Caring for Children and Young People National Vocational Qualification level 3. This is arranged through the council and much of the other training undertaken e.g. core training will count towards you achieving this qualification.

Foster carers receive an allowance for each child placed in their care. This allowance covers the daily costs of looking after a child and is a rate recommended by Fostering Network, a national independent organisation that promotes fostering and the interests of children and foster carers. Holiday, birthday and Christmas allowances are also paid and you'll receive expenses covering other costs you may incur as a result of looking after a child.

You can also receive a fee for the work you undertake as a foster carer. This fee is based upon the skills you have as a carer. Foster carers can progress through to different levels of fee; this is dependent on the training undertaken and the skills carers develop. If a carer already has relevant qualifications when approved they may receive a higher rate of fee immediately. These fees are taxable.

top

As a carer

As a foster carer you'll provide day to day care for any child who needs looking after. You'll help to implement a care plan for individual children. This may include specific responsibilities e.g. making sure the child is able to visit her/his family and friends.

In all aspects, you'll continually promote the healthy growth and development of a child, particularly with regards to their health and education. Actively encouraging children to learn, you'll help them to feel positive about their origins, religion and culture. You'll build relationships with children and also assist and support parents and other people who are important to them, sustaining and creating good relations. At all times you'll ensure that the children you're caring for are kept safe from harm and abuse and taught how to get help if anything untoward should happen to them.

Helping children to develop secure attachments with adults is another essential element of a carers role. Enabling them to realise that some adults can provide them with safe and effective care. To speak up for the children in order to ensure that they receive good care and opportunity to develop.

Working as a part of the council team and with staff and professionals from many agencies, you'll work within policy and guidelines that are in place and ensure that each child fulfils their potential. You'll take part in meetings about the child you're caring for, keep written records about their care and contribute to reports about the child, dealing responsibly with confidential information. And at every stage carers are offered support and training and are expected to take advantage of appropriate training.

top

Skills required

To be a successful carer, you will need an ability to provide a good standard of care for other people's children, promoting healthy development and achievement. An ability to work closely with these children's families and those important to the child. And an ability to set appropriate boundaries and manage a child's behaviour without resorting to physical or inappropriate punishment.

This ability will probably be natural to you and if not, with our support, you'll soon acquire it. You also need a knowledge of child development and must be able to listen and communicate with children in a manner appropriate to their age and understanding.

Ensuring that children are cared for in a home safe from harm and abuse, you'll advise these children on how to get help when they need to. Working with other professionals, you'll contribute to good care plans for children. You will also need to communicate with a variety of people and promote equality.

Making the best use of training opportunities, you should be willing to develop your skills and appreciate how personal experiences have affected you and your family as well as how fostering will affect everyone concerned. Your strong character must be able to sustain positive relationships during periods of stress. And you should have people and links within the community that will provide you with support whenever you need it.

top