Types of Fostering

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Fostering is a way of providing a short-term home for a child until a permanent solution can be found. It’s not always known how long a child will be in foster care for. When a child comes into foster care in Kingston there are three possible outcomes: the child will return home to his or her birth family, they will stay in long-term foster care or be adopted. Babies who may be adopted are fostered until suitable adoptive parents are found.

The different types of fostering are explained below.

This is the kind of care that most of our foster carers provide. Children stay with them for anything from a few days to a few months. Short term carers do all the usual kinds of things that parents do for their children, such as giving them good food to eat, clean clothes and a regular routine but they also take children to meetings with birth parents, social workers and other professionals. Two of the most important things a foster carer does for a child is to give them time and a listening ear.

Sometimes a child will be removed from home suddenly as a result of unexpected circumstances or if it has come to light that they have been victims of neglect or abuse. Emergency placements may be for as little as one night while a more permanent place to stay is found.

Children remain in long term foster care when a court rules that they cannot go back to live with their birth parents. If adoption is unlikely - they may be considered too old to adjust or have no wish for a new family – long term fostering is often the best solution. One or more children from the same family can stay with the same foster carer until they reach adulthood. While a child in long term care may seem like part of the family, they remain the responsibility of the local authority and their carers are not able to make decisions about their future.

People who work full-  time and are not available to care for a child during the week can make a valuable contribution by becoming respite foster carers. They will usually provide weekend or holiday care for children whose parents may need a break, or for other foster carers.

Respite carers typically look after children with physical or learning disabilities, or those who are experiencing difficulties at home and need time out. They may have a child to stay overnight at weekends a couple of times a month on a regular basis and are able to build a relationship with that child over time.

Short breaks carers can give a child valuable experiences, such as outings that their parents may not be able to manage.

The process for becoming a respite carer is the same as for all other foster carers.

Occasionally we need fostering placements for young mums and their babies. In these cases the foster carer provides a place for both to stay, stability and support to hopefully help a young mum acquire the skills she needs as a parent, and monitors the relationship as part of the local authority’s work in making future plans for the baby.

When a parent is unable to look after their child and the child becomes looked after by the local authority, it is sometimes possible for a family member or friend to take care of the child instead. People who take on this role become approved as the child’s official foster carer and receive allowances and the support of the Fostering Team. Family and friends carers have to be assessed and able to work with the local authority’s plan for the child.