Futures for Children foster carers each have a qualified social worker allocated to supervise and support them in caring for the children they have in placement. These social workers maintain regular contact with foster carers by visiting regularly and maintaining telephone contact between visits. In addition, carers can access support and guidance on a 24 hour basis throughout the year from our team of committed social work staff who operate an on call service out of office hours.

All foster carers receive a fee which recognises their professional commitment to the fostering task. In addition to their weekly fee, carers receive three weeks’ holiday pay annually to enable foster children to be included in family holidays and activities.

On approval, foster carers sign a Foster Care Agreement which sets out the responsibilities of the organisation and the carers to each other and to the children placed with them. All carers receive a copy of our information pack “Futures for Children Guidance for Foster Carers”.

All carers approved by Futures for Children will have undertaken preparation training in groups that will include the opportunity to meet experienced foster carers. Once approved, carers participate alongside staff and sessional workers in our comprehensive training programme provided both in house and externally. More experienced foster carers are supported to undertake NVQ courses.

Carers are invited to attend a range of activities during the year, including our annual dinner dance and the summer trip. Carers are kept up to date with information from the agency via their social worker and by regular correspondence. They are also able to access news and updates via the website.