Every child needs to feel the love of a caring family. Are you looking for a more rewarding career that provides a better work/life balance? Have you ever thought about fostering?

More children than ever are being put into care, but there is a desperate shortage of foster carers across South East London and Kent.

We are actively looking to recruit people who can provide a stable secure home, to allow children the opportunity to rebuild their lives and have a bright future.

We are committed to providing excellent support to our foster carers and this includes a generous weekly allowance, full training and 24/7 support to ensure children and young people leave fostering and go on to live happy positive lives.

What is foster care?

Being a foster carer is richly rewarding. Fostering is a way of providing family life for someone else’s child in your home when they are unable to live with their parents. Fostering is a flexible working option, enabling you to stay at home and care for a child around your own family needs. Foster carers offer an invaluable service helping children regain active, positive lives.

Fostering is a lifestyle choice to provide children and young people with a caring and nurturing environment. This is often only a temporary arrangement, and many fostered children return to their birth families. Children, who cannot return home often live in long-term or permanent foster care.

Could you foster?

Foster carers come from all walks of life – you may be at home with your own children and have room for one or more, your children have flown the nest but you have a wealth of experience to offer, or you haven’t any children of your own but have the life skills and experience to meet the needs of children and young people. Whatever the reason, fos¬tering could offer you a fulfilling way of life that really benefits others in so many different ways.

We positively welcome applications from people whatever your religious or ethnic background, whether you are married or single, in a same sex relationship, own your own home, rent privately or live in a council or housing association property - we would like to here from you.

You could foster and change the life of a child or young person if you:

  • Have an interest and time to care for a child or young person
  • Have a spare bedroom
  • Are over the age of 23 years (there is no upper age limit)
  • An ability to work with professionals
  • Good support networks
  • Are flexible and have the ability to care for children with a range of different needs
  • Have a genuine interest in the welfare of children

Flexible Fostering

There are many different types of foster care, so you can be involved for a few hours or a few years, it’s up to you. We will only place children that are best suited to your current situation. Who will I care for?

We are looking for carers to look after children and teenagers, sibling groups, and are flexible for either short or long term placements. We want to support children and young people so that in some cases they can be placed closer to their community, maintain vital links with family and friends and remain in their school.

  • Short-term - which could be from one night to approximately one year
  • Long term - which in most cases could be up until the young person is 18 years old
  • Respite care - is supporting a child in care with one of our existing foster carers for a short period of time

What we offer:

  • A generous weekly allowance
  • Your own dedicated supervising social worker who will support you with all care requirements
  • On-going professional training
  • Monthly support groups
  • Two weeks paid respite
  •  Annual foster carers’ award ceremony and dinner and dance
  • Trips and activities for you, your child and the looked after child

To find out more please call our friendly team for an informal chat on 020 8771 6167 or visit our website www.fosteringsupportgroup.com.