Your Journey to Becoming a Foster Carer Starts Here

About Fostering

Our Support Model

Who Can Foster?

Training & Development

Types of Fostering

Financial Support

What is Fostering?

Fostering means opening your home to provide a safe, caring and nurturing environment for children who, for a variety of reasons, can’t live with their birth families. This may be due to experiences such as neglect or abuse, or sometimes because parents are unable to cope with their child’s needs.

For many children, coming into care can be a frightening and unsettling time. Foster carers play a vital role in helping them feel safe, supported and cared for, ensuring their day to day needs are met and giving them the stability they need.

The length of time a child stays in foster care can vary greatly, from a few weeks or months to several years, and sometimes until they reach adulthood. Every situation is different. Some children are able to return to their families or move on to adoption, while many remain with their foster carers into adulthood and beyond.

As a foster carer, you have the opportunity to make a lasting, positive difference by providing a consistent, nurturing and secure home environment, and so much more.

Taking on this role comes with real responsibility, as you are caring for someone else’s child, which can feel like a big responsibility at times. That’s why, at Kasper, we make sure you are fully supported with the training, guidance and encouragement you need every step of the way.

Enquire To Foster

Support

When a child is in care, there’s a team around the child working together to support their needs, but it’s foster carers who provide the day-to-day care, stability and reassurance.

At Kasper, we believe it’s just as important to look after you. We take the time to really get to know you and build strong, trusting relationships, because you should feel valued, supported and heard every step of the way.

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Feeling supported isn’t just important, it’s essential. We take pride in making sure that support comes from across the whole agency, so it feels consistent, genuine and personal, and we hope, more like a close-knit family than a service. Our approach is always rooted in understanding, empathy and a willingness to listen.

Support can take many forms. It might be more regular visits from your supervising social worker, tailored training to help you better understand the needs of the child in your care, or access to therapeutic support for you and the child. Sometimes, it’s as simple as knowing you can pick up the phone and speak to someone who will listen. Whatever you need, we’re here, and our carers’ experiences reflect just how seriously we take that commitment.

Carer Stories

What do you need to become a foster carer?

If you’re thinking about fostering, there are a few essentials you will need to consider:

You need to be over 21
You must have the right to live and work in the UK
You’ll need a spare bedroom that a child can make their own
And most importantly, a genuine commitment to offering safety, care, and stability

Ready to take the first step?

If you feel you meet the essentials, we’d love to hear from you.

Getting started is simple, when you get in touch, a member of our team will arrange a call at a time that suits you. It’s a relaxed, no‑pressure conversation where we can share more about fostering, answer any questions you might have, and get to know a little about you, your family and your circumstances.

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Who can become a foster carer

Our foster carers come from many different backgrounds and levels of experience, so don’t rule yourself out, get in touch and let’s have a conversation about it.

Age

Fostering isn’t about how old you are it’s about the stability, warmth, and support you can offer a child. Whether you’re in your twenties or enjoying life after retirement Kasper welcomes carers across a wide age range. What matters most is your ability to provide a safe nurturing home. Age alone is never a barrier the focus is on your health, energy, and commitment to supporting a child’s emotional and practical needs.
Same Sex Couples

Same-sex couples bring diverse strengths and experiences to fostering, and they are warmly welcomed in the fostering community. Children thrive in homes filled with love, acceptance, and belonging — and LGBTQ+ carers often provide unique insights and empathy that help young people feel safe and understood. What matters is your ability to work as a team, offer stability, and create a supportive environment where a child can grow.
Single Carer

You don’t need to be part of a couple to foster; single carers make an incredible difference in children’s lives every day. What matters is your capacity to provide consistency, emotional support, and time for a child who needs a safe home. Many single people find fostering deeply rewarding, and agencies provide strong support networks to help you every step of the way — you’re never alone on your fostering journey.

Mental Health & Disabilities

Living with a mental health condition or a disability does not automatically prevent someone from fostering. What we look for here at Kasper is stability, good support systems, and the ability to meet a child’s needs. Many carers with lived experience of mental health challenges or disabilities bring empathy, resilience, and understanding that can be hugely beneficial to young people who have experienced trauma and uncertainty.
Experience

You don’t need professional experience to become a foster carer — training, guidance, and ongoing support are provided. Parenting experience can help, but it isn’t essential; what matters most is patience, reliability, and a willingness to learn. Many outstanding carers come from completely different backgrounds and discover that their everyday life skills translate beautifully into fostering.
Own or Rent

It doesn’t matter whether you own your home or rent — both can be suitable environments for fostering. What’s important is that your home is stable, safe, and has enough space to offer a child their own bedroom. Landlord permission is required for renters, but fostering teams can help guide you through that process, ensuring everything is in place.

Benefits

Being on benefits does not automatically stop you from fostering. Many carers receive benefits due to disability, unemployment, or low income and still offer fantastic homes to children. Fostering allowances are paid to cover the cost of caring for a child, and receiving benefits doesn’t disqualify you — what matters is your ability to provide a secure and nurturing environment.
Spare Room

A spare room is essential for fostering, as each child needs their own private space to feel safe and settle into your home. It doesn’t need to be large or newly decorated — just a warm, secure room where a child can sleep, relax, and make their own. This simple requirement ensures dignity, privacy, and a strong foundation for building trust.
Working Part/Or Full Time

Types of Fostering

Every child deserves a safe, supportive environment to grow and thrive. Fostering comes in many different forms, allowing you to choose a path that best fits your lifestyle, family, and the level of care you can provide. Explore the diverse ways you can make a meaningful, lasting difference to a child’s life below.

Short-term Fostering

Provide a calm, nurturing space for a child while plans for their future are made. It offers stability during moments of uncertainty.

Long-term Fostering

Give a child a safe, steady home for the years ahead, often into adulthood. It’s about belonging, consistency, and growing together.

Parent & Child Placements

Welcome a parent or parents and their baby into your home, offering guidance, encouragement, and a safe place to learn and grow together.

Children with Disabilities

Provide tailored, compassionate care for children with additional needs, helping them thrive with the right support and understanding.

Respite Care

Offering children a safe and caring change of environment, while giving families or carers a chance to pause and recharge. These short breaks can make a real difference in maintaining long-term stability

Caring For Teenagers

Support young people through an important and sometimes difficult stage of life. Teenagers need patience, guidance, and a steady adult who believes in them.

Caring For Babies

Offer loving, attentive care for infants who need routine, nurturing, and a secure start in their life, possibly seeing them through to a return home or adoption.

Caring for Siblings

Keep brothers and sisters together so they can stay connected, supported, and comforted by one another during a challenging time.

Our Support Model

Dedicated supervising social worker
24/7 on-call support
Regular visits & reviews

Enquire To Foster

Jacqui

Registered Manager

At Kasper, we place real importance on the support we provide to both our carers and the children in their care. Our supervising social workers have purposefully small caseloads, giving them the time to really get to know you and build strong, meaningful relationships.

That relationship is central to everything, not only so you feel connected, but so you feel genuinely supported. Fostering is incredibly rewarding, but it also comes with its challenges, which is why having that trusted support around you is so important.

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You’ll receive monthly visits from your social worker, along with at least one call each week. Of course, you can always contact them whenever you need to, and our office team is there too, you’ll be known by name, and there will always be someone ready to offer help and advice.

As fostering is a 24/7 role, it’s essential that support is available whenever you need it. Our out-of-hours service means you can always speak to someone in the evenings or at the weekend, and importantly, it will be someone from our team who you’re likely to know.

For us, it’s all about relationships. They sit at the heart of everything we do, with children, with carers, and within the staff team. We’re proud to have a stable, long-standing team, and the same can be said for many of our carers. A significant number have been fostering with us for 10 to 25 years, which we believe reflects the strength of the relationships we build and the support we provide.

Hayley

Training Co-ordinator

Training & Development

As a foster carer, Kasper Fostering provides you with:

Pre‑approval training
Ongoing professional development
Therapeutic and trauma‑informed approaches

Ask About Training

Pre Panel/Assessment Training

During your fostering assessment, you will be required to complete the statutory training courses: Child Protection, Managing Challenging Behaviour, First Aid, and Safer Caring. These courses are completed online and can be taken one at a time, allowing you to work through them at your own pace from home without any pressure.
Training Requirements for Foster Carers

At Kasper, we believe that high‑quality training helps carers feel confident, supported, and fully equipped to meet the needs of the children in their care. From the moment you start your fostering journey, you’ll receive access to a full programme of statutory and specialist courses, delivered both online and face to face to suit your schedule.
Statutory Training
All foster carers are required to complete a core set of statutory courses. These ensure you have the knowledge and skills to keep children safe while understanding their emotional and developmental needs. Our statutory training includes:

Child Protection (Safeguarding) – Understanding how to recognise, respond to, and report concerns, keeping every child safe.

Managing Challenging Behaviour – Practical strategies to support children who may express their feelings through behaviour, helping you create a calm and consistent environment.

Paediatric First Aid – Essential skills to respond to common childhood injuries or emergencies with confidence.
Specialist Training
Beyond the statutory courses, we provide an extensive range of specialist training designed to deepen your understanding and build on your skills. These courses help you feel prepared for a variety of fostering situations and individual needs. Examples include:

Therapeutic Parenting / PACE (Trauma Informed Care)

Sensory Processing and Emotional Regulation

Safer Caring in the Foster Home

Radicalisation, Extremism & Prevent

Caring for Children with Autism or ADHD

CSE (Child Sexual Exploitation) Awareness

Online Safety

Promoting Positive Identity and Self‑Esteem

Safer sleeping for babies

Understanding Self Harm

Our training courses are available face to face, online (virtual sessions), or through self‑paced e‑learning, giving foster carers the flexibility to choose the style that suits them best.

Face‑to‑Face Training – Benefit: Offers hands‑on learning, real-time interaction, practical demonstrations, and the chance to build connections with other carers and trainers in a supportive environment.

Online Virtual Training – Benefit: Provides the same live teaching experience as in‑person sessions but with the convenience of joining from home, making it easier to fit training around work, school runs, or family life.

E‑Learning Modules – Benefit: Allows you to complete training at your own pace and revisit materials whenever needed — perfect for carers with busy or unpredictable schedules.
Ongoing Support

Training isn’t something you do once — it’s a continuous part of being a foster carer. Whether you’re new to fostering or highly experienced, we’re here to offer ongoing learning opportunities, workshops, group sessions, and one‑to‑one support.

Our training coordinator is always adding new sessions to reflect the latest research, guidance, and best practice in fostering.
Training, Support and Development Standards (TSDS)
The Training, Support, and Development Standards (TSDS) are a mandatory set of benchmarks for foster carers in England. They outline exactly what you must know, understand, and achieve within your first 12 to 18 months of approval.

You will record your progress in an evidence workbook alongside your supervising social worker.

The TSDS framework consists of seven main standards designed to ensure foster carers can properly care for children and young people.

The seven standards are:

Standard 1: Understand the principles and values essential for fostering children and young people

Standard 2: Understand your role as a foster carer

Standard 3: Understand health and safety, and healthy care

Standard 4: Know how to communicate effectively

Standard 5: Understand the development of children and young people

Standard 6: Keep children and young people safe from harm

Standard 7: Develop yourself

The TSD Standards aim to provide foster carers with a clearer understanding of their role; greater confidence and clarity , an outline of essential knowledge and skills; recognition for your developing professionalism and a pathway to further learning and development.

Allowances and Financial Support

Foster carers receive a weekly payment and additional fees where applicable:

Weekly fostering allowance
Additional fees (where applicable)
Transparent, reliable payments

Speak to Our Team

Request an Info Pack

Speak to Our Team

Request an Info Pack

Di Jeffers

Finance Officer

How much are foster carers paid?

Well, it all rather depends. Fostering placements are categorised according to the age of the child, the level of need and your own experience as a foster carer. Depending on the criteria the foster carer will receive a fee made up of two parts. A fee element and an allowance element.

The fee is the money you receive directly for your care of the child placed with you.

The allowance element covers the specifics of caring for the child and will include things like clothing, personal care items and pocket money.

At Kasper, you will be paid every two weeks

It is important that you are aware, whilst you do not have a child in placement, you will not receive a fee. In addition to your weekly fee Kasper also provide a number of additional allowances and benefits which include:

Respite & Allowances

Generous annual holiday allowance.
14 to 21 nights of respite allowance (scaling for more complex placements).
Payment for up to 14 nights of unused respite.

Training & Growth

Continuous, dedicated investment in your personal training and professional development.
Ongoing guidance and education to help you confidently build your skills as a foster carer.

Dedicated Support

A supervising social worker with a small caseload, giving them the time to truly know your family and offer tailored advice.
Full membership to Foster Talk for independent, ongoing support.

Community & Recognition

Regular social events and celebrations to connect and share experiences with other foster families.
Invitations to our Annual Awards Ceremony where we celebrate the achievements of our young people.

Start Your Journey Today

Enquire To Foster

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