Children go into foster care for a multitude of different reasons. Wherever they come from and for whatever reason they need care, finding the right home and carer is of the highest importance. There are many caring, wonderful support families out there, but the truth is, there are never enough.
There are always more children who need to be given the opportunity to flourish in a safe and supportive environment. You may be reading this article for a variety of reasons. If one of them is because you would like to contribute to a young person’s life, keep reading, or visit fosteringsolutions.com for more information.
Do your homework
Before you decide to get in touch with any foster agencies, it’s definitely worth assessing your own suitability, to save time. There are criteria you need to meet. It is beneficial to have previous experience and the necessary skills to take care of a young person. They also need their own bedroom, so you should ensure you have available space in your house before considering an application.
You will also be expected to take some basic training during your assessment.
Look for agencies
If you’re still confident that you’d qualify as a foster parent, you should contact the local authority’s fostering department, or a private fostering agency like Fostering Solutions, to meet someone who can advise you on how to proceed.
If you meet the criteria, the agency will send someone to your house or flat to assess its suitability as an environment for a young person to be in.
Natural suitability
Perhaps the most important step is one that’s effectively unofficial: are you naturally suited to this role? To be a successful foster parent, it is essential that you generally enjoy spending time with young people. It might sound obvious to state this, but even people who think they have that rapport with kids suddenly find it tested when faced with a new child in their life.
To be able to build up trust with and confidence in a child or young person takes not only skill, but the desire to do so. If you can, then there may be a child out there who you can help support and provide them with a brighter future.