The government has announced a £12.4 million investment into fostering through a new Fostering Innovation Fund in a bid to make foster care “more accessible and inclusive across England”.
The fund will support the modernisation of the foster care system and enable more flexibility in how care is provided, as the government, acknowledged the increasing challenge of recruiting foster carers against a backdrop of role of modern lifestyles and household structures.
“For too long, foster care has been provided on the assumption that people need to be in traditional, married relationships with only one carer working full time to be successful,” the Department for Education and children’s ministerJosh MacAlister said in a statement. The reforms “aim to attract a younger and more diverse mixture of carers as well as improving the experience of fostering for existing carers,” the statement added.
The funding will be allocated to regional care cooperatives and fostering hubs, which are operated by local authorities.
MacAlister said: “Every child deserves the chance to grow up in a safe and loving home, and I’ve been truly inspired by the foster carers I have met who make that happen.
“This investment will help us bring fostering into the 21st century, moving on from outdated assumptions about who can foster and how care should be offered and opening it up to a wider range of people. This will help us recruit more carers, and change more children’s lives by giving them a stable home.”
New forms of care are being trialled, including respite or weekend-only fostering, to support other forms of long-term care such children living in residential care homes or being looked after by extended family members.
Sara Fernandez, CEO at fostering charity NOW Foster, said: “At Now Foster, we believe fostering should be something many more people can see themselves being part of. Children in care need safe, stable and loving homes, and they also need a village of trusted adults who can stay alongside them as they grow up. We love seeing people step in as Weekenders, building long-term relationships with children when they might not otherwise be able to foster full-time.
“These relationships can bring consistency, joy and love to children, while also offering vital support to full-time carers. They also give people a way to build their confidence, skills and understanding of fostering, should they want to foster more in the future. By making fostering more flexible and accessible, we can open the door to more people offering the kinds of enduring relationships that can change a child’s life.
Dame Carol Homden, CEO of children’s charity Coram, said: “This investment is a timely and clear acknowledgment of the strength and potential of a fostering sector that is already rich with creativity, commitment and practical innovation.
“What is particularly encouraging is the opportunity this fund creates for local authorities, independent fostering agencies and wider partners to work together more intentionally, as collaboration is essential if we are serious about improving outcomes for children in care.”
The investment forms part of the government’s wider plans to reform and expand foster care, including the creation of 10,000 additional foster care places over the course of this Parliament.
