How do I become a foster carer

The process from making your first enquiry to becoming an approved foster carer will vary according to where you live. It will include the following steps:

Enquiry

Contact your local authority fostering team to discuss becoming a foster carer (details below).

Home visit

A social worker will come and visit you in your home. They will ask you some questions about your life, experience, skills and motivations and will see if your home is suitable for fostering.

Assessment

If the home visit is successful a social worker will then visit you and your family on a regular basis for anything between 3-8 months to assess your suitability for the role.

Training

During the assessment period you will also attend some pre-approval training to prepare you for welcoming children and young people into your home.

Panel

Your social worker will make a recommendation which will then go to an independent panel of professionals for consideration. You are supported to attend this panel meeting by your social worker.

Approval

If your local authority agrees with a panel decision for approval, you will then become a registered foster carer for your local authority and can begin looking after children and young people.

Post-approval

You will be allocated a social worker to support you throughout your time as a foster carer. They will visit you regularly to offer you guidance and support and link you in to relevant training.

Download our becoming a foster carer guide for more information on the process.

Becoming a foster carer guide (WYR) (January 2022).pdf