Foster parents are ordinary people doing an extraordinary job. Generally foster parents need to be patient, understanding and resilient. They need to be able to understand why a child may be behaving in a certain way, the reasons behind that and work with them to thrive and meet their full potential.
Relationships and sexuality
Some foster parents are single people, some may be in a relationship or married. Some are male, some female. It’s about what you can offer children and young people, not your relationship status or sexuality.
Age
We’re often asked about age. Is there a minimum or maximum? While there are no upper or lower age limits to be a foster parent you’ll need to be mature enough and energetic enough to meet the needs of children.
Criminal Records
There are some specific, very serious offences which can rule people out to be a foster parent immediately. However, there are others with less serious offences that would not rule them out as foster parents. Each case is considered individually. All we ask is that you are open honest from the beginning. As a guide the older and more minor the offence the less likely it would be to stop you fostering. People who have moved on in their lives can often become foster parents and draw experience from their previous life events.
Medical Issues
By law everyone who fosters must have a medical to ensure you are fit and well enough to meet the needs of a child. This is normally carried out by your own GP and any additional information from a consultant can be considered by our Independent Medical Advisor.
Disability
If you have a disability, long-term health condition it does not necessarily mean that you will not be able to become a foster parent. We aim to match different skills and abilities of all applicants to the individual children. We are happy to chat in confidence with you about your individual circumstances.