Becoming A Foster Family

At Family Fostering Partners community is the main focus. This community consists of the child/young person, the family looking to foster and the care team provided by Family Fostering Partners. Deciding to foster a child is not a decision to be taken lightly. The lifestyle choice takes commitment and dedication. This ethos underpins all of the work we do as an agency. Collectively we will aid any family network looking to become foster parents as following through with this decision presents a willingness to learn and develop.

Knowing that the children and young people Family Fostering Partners supports through the fostering process are of utmost importance, we provide all relevant fostering information that gives these individuals the consistency and stability they need to move forward with confidence.

As you have found your way to the Family Fostering Partners site, it is clear you have given a lot of thought to becoming a foster family. Having decided that fostering is the right move for you, then Family Fostering Partners is the natural choice when it comes to an agency. With a well-established reputation for high quality care and positive outcomes, we have been ranked as a Tier 1 agency in the All Wales Fostering Framework. This has led us to expand the same level of high-quality care to England, where we are members of the West Midlands Framework.

Achieving these accolades is no easy feat, the accreditation only demonstrates the outstanding standards of care we provide. If what you have read so far about Family Fostering Partners further concretes your decision to become a foster family, and you believe you would enjoy working with an independent fostering agency composed of a team of highly skilled and supportive professionals Then we welcome you to learn more about how to foster a child/young person with Family Fostering Partners.

When you choose us as an independent fostering agency, we promise in return to look after you with genuine support - emotional and practical. Most importantly we will ensure that you feel like a trusted and valued member of the family. 

How To Become A Foster Carer

Choosing to foster a child or young adult is a distinguished service to brighten their future. Strictly speaking, the definition of fostering is to temporarily take responsibility for a young individual outside of your own family. Commonly, this will be a person who has been placed into the care of the local authority, then seeking to settle into a safe, loving, home environment. Becoming a foster parent with Family Fostering Partners is a life changing journey that goes above and beyond this definition.

1. Get In Touch (enquire)
   If you are thinking about fostering, the first step is to get in touch with us. This can be through a variety of methods: give us a call, send us an email or use the online chat forum, contact us on social media. One of our friendly, relatable team members will conduct an initial phone call before moving on to the second step - a home visit. This allows us to make extra sure you’re best suited to begin your fostering journey.

2. Home Visit
   Formal meetings can sometimes seem a bit daunting, we want to make sure your true personality prevails and that you are able to shine! When you feel ready, one of the team will speak to you from the comfort of your own home, either face - to - face or via video call to talk about the role in more detail, as well as your desire to become a foster family.
3. Apply To Foster
   Following on from the initial visit, when you are ready to move forward with the fostering journey you will need to fill out and submit a fostering application form. This will then be reviewed by our assessment manager and if successful you will begin your fostering assessment.
4. Assessment
   Typically, on average the fostering process & becoming a foster parent will take 4 - 6 months. The assessment process will then follow the pattern of a series of social worker visits, collecting references and conducting checks, as well as some initial training too, to ensure your fostering journey gets off to the best possible start.
5. Approval
   The penultimate stage of the fostering process will see you attend a fostering panel, where a group of independent child care professionals will review the assessment and make a recommendation on your approval.
6. Matching Foster Placements
   Expertly matching our foster families to the suitable child or young person is a skill we have honed for almost a decade. At Family Fostering partners we pride ourselves on being able to make a well informed decision. Of course, this is the most important part of the fostering process, which is why we take extra special care to ensure a wonderful fostering story for all.

By all means, don’t just take our word for it. Here are some honest reviews from the foster carers we work with every single day…