Training & Support

Information

Fostering Ltd views our Foster Carers as professionals and as such, we provide a comprehensive training and support package. Fostering is a difficult and demanding career so this is reflected in the weekly allowance you will be given when you have a child in placement.

Dependent on the needs of the child and the type of placement you provide, the weekly allowances vary between £380 – £650 per child per week.

Your fostering allowance comprises of a professional fee and a child care allowance. The professional fee is the proportion of allowance that is paid for your time, almost like a wage; the rest is intended to cover the costs of caring for a child including:

As a foster carer, you will...

Be classed as self-employed and will be responsible for arranging your own tax and National Insurance contributions. You may also be entitled to tax relief on your fostering income. The tax relief you’ll receive depends on your financial circumstances and you will need to complete a tax return.

HMRC has also created a dedicated Foster Care eLearning package which offers Foster Carer/s guidance, advice and practical tips relating to tax and National Insurance

Training & Support

Skills Training, Courses & Support

Below is a comprehensive list of what our support and continual training provide for our foster carers. We train you with the necessary skills needed to foster and we cover a broad range of topics, courses, and talks during regular training sessions for all our carers. Fostering Ltd views our Foster Carers as professionals and as such, we provide a comprehensive training and support package.

Skills to Foster

The first mandatory training that you will be expected to attend is ‘Skills to Foster’. This will be attended during your assessment and each applicant is required to attend.

This course is run over two days and is intended to provide you with a basic awareness and understanding of the fostering role, as well as insight into issues relating to the care of children who are looked after. This will also give you the opportunity to meet other people in assessment, listen to the stories and experiences of Foster Carer/s.

The Skills to Foster course is part of the assessment process so attendance is a pre-approval requirement.

The 'Skills to Foster' training days cover the following areas

Roles and responsibilities of foster carers
Child development
Working with birth families
Cost of business insurance on any vehicles
Structure of Fostering Ltd
Risk assessment’s
Legal context of children in foster care
Safer caring
Allegations
Needs of children in foster care
Attachment and loss
Managing challenging behavior
The placement process and finance matters

Training

Please keep in mind that once approved, it is expected that at least one carer (if a joint application) will attend regular training, approximately once per month.

Our training schedule is broad and covers topics such as

Attachment
Child and Adolescent Mental Health
Children’s Rights
Child Sexual Exploitation
Drug and Alcohol Awareness
Autism
ADHD an ADD
The effects of abuse and Neglect
Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
Working with children with sexually harmful behavior
Working with children and young people who self-harm

Post-approval training courses

Fostering Ltd places a great emphasis on foster carers attending regular training to ensure their skills and knowledge stay up to date.

There are fourteen post-approval mandatory training courses that all carers are expected to attend

Safeguarding Foundation
Equality and Diversity
Attachment and Child Development
Paediatric First Aid
GDPR
Managing Challenging Behaviour
De-escalation and Young People

Health and Safety
Fire Safety
Internet Safety
Risk Management and Safer Care
Medication Foundation
The role of the Foster Carer
Working in Partnership

Comprehensive support package

We understand that foster carers cannot offer excellent care without the support of their agency; children have the best outcomes when all professionals involved in their care work together, rather than in isolation of each other.

Fostering Ltd has a comprehensive support package that includes:

24/7 Telephone support – Offering honest, consistent advice and support. This is staffed by our team so no matter when you ring, there will be a familiar voice on the end of the phone.
Monthly Supervision – your SSW will visit you at home at least once per month to discuss progress, training needs, emotional impact and any queries you may have
Regular phone calls – in addition to regular home visits we also make regular phone calls to ensure communication stays open and you have someone to talk to
Home visits on request – we appreciate that sometimes you may need face-to-face support at short notice; we will always arrange to visit your home within 72 hours of you requesting a visit. This ensures that you receive support when it is needed most
Membership to Fostering Network and Foster-Talk – These are specialist fostering organisations that offer advice and support to carers regarding finance, legal matters, support through allegations and a confidential support line
Mentoring Scheme – we encourage all new carers to speak with experienced carers as well as seeking support from the agency.
Foster Carer Coffee Mornings – a chance for carers to meet with each other and agency staff
Foster Carer Newsletter – making sure you keep up to date with goings on at Fostering Ltd
Bi-annual Fostering Ltd trips – these are social events that the whole family are invited to; summer picnics, ice skating, tubing, Christmas parties and carer restaurant visits to name a few!

Training & Support

Information

As a foster carer, you will...

Training & Support

Skills Training, Courses & Support

Skills to Foster

The 'Skills to Foster' training days cover the following areas

Training

Our training schedule is broad and covers topics such as

Post-approval training courses

There are fourteen post-approval mandatory training courses that all carers are expected to attend

Comprehensive support package

Fostering Ltd has a comprehensive support package that includes:

Fostering Ltd

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