Foster care provides a safe, secure and stable environment for children and young people who cannot live with their birth family. 

Sadly, not every child has a loving, stable home and if things get tough or unsafe at home, some children and teenagers may need a caring adult to look after them until things get better.

Fostering provides a caring and safe environment for young people when they need it most.

We know that choosing to become a foster carer is a big decision and whilst foster care is driven by a desire to positively impact a child’s life, you still need to be remunerated for your hard work and so pay is an important factor to consider.

At NCT, we offer an attractive financial package that helps you with the cost of looking after a child or children in your care.

Your fostering payment and allowance starts as soon as you begin caring for a child or young person. Our carers receive on average £495 per week, but fees and allowances can go up to £807 (£42,000 per year) depending on a number of factors, including: 

• the type of foster care you provide
• the number of children in your care
• the age of the child or children you look after
• the needs of the child or children. 

The payment you receive from NCT will be made up of two elements: 

• The maintenance allowance for each child you care which helps with costs like food, clothing, pocket money and birthdays
• The foster carer fee, this is a taxable income in recognition of your fostering role.

Fostering a child or young person is unlike any other career. Not only will you help a child who is in desperate need of a safe and loving home, you also have a big impact on their lives.

You don’t need any special qualifications to be a foster parent, however, you do need to possess some key qualities.

Many children in care will have experienced some sort of trauma in their lives and as such, certain skills are vital to supporting their needs, these include:

• Empathy
• Resilience 
• Good communication skills
• Conflict Resolution
• Compassion
• Patience

We work with a wonderfully diverse community of foster carers and welcome people from all walks of life to consider fostering.  

It doesn’t matter what your religious or cultural background is, whether you’re single, married, divorced, in a civil partnership, a homeowner or renting, we believe you can foster.  

What’s most important is that you are caring, patient, understanding and can offer the children and young people in your care a positive and loving environment.  

You don’t need special qualifications or childcare experience. We’ll provide on-going support and training programmes to develop your skills and fostering knowledge.  

All you need is to: 

• be at least 21 years-old 

• have a spare bedroom big enough for a child or young person to live in 

• be a full-time resident in the UK or have leave to remain 

• be able to give the time to care for a child or young person 

It’s also important that you are able to offer a smoke-free environment. 

Check out our ‘Children & Young People‘ section on our homepage for more useful information. 

Once approved, you will become part of a network of foster carers who, alongside your dedicated social worker, will provide you with on-going support and advice.  

People often rule themselves out of fostering because of the many myths surrounding fostering, such as ‘I can’t foster if I’m single’ or ‘I can’t foster if I’m gay’ or ‘I can’t foster if I don’t have my own children’.

That is just not true! – Our network of foster carers is diverse and widely different. 

Check out the ‘Fostering‘ page of our website or why not complete our useful ‘Initial Enquiry‘ form for more information or to speak to someone?