Why is good support so important to foster carers?
At Eastern Fostering Services, we pride ourselves on the care we offer to our foster carers. We are a small team of fostering professionals. We are passionate about helping our foster carers get the best outcomes for children.
Good support is critical to foster carers and children alike. As a foster carer, when you feel supported and advocated for, you feel better placed and more confident to advocate for the children in your care. Foster carers who receive a high level and quality of support are more resilient, more able to commit to a child and better able to understand and fight for the needs of the children.
Variety is important
Individual support
At Eastern Fostering Services, we have a team of Fostering Supervising Social workers. You can meet the team here. Their role is to help foster carers in all areas of care for the children. The social workers support the foster carers and their families. Carers have regular meetings with their social workers. This gives them the opportunity to talk through problems and strategies. Equally, these meetings are a great opportunity to celebrate success.
As well as planned meetings, foster carers are able to access support at any time of the day, week or year. Because we are a small team, when carers call us with a problem, they are sure to speak to someone who knows them and their child well. This removes the burden of endless explanation and offers our carers comfort and confidence.
Group Support
In addition to individual support, carers at Eastern Fostering Services can take advantage of regular group support meetings. Our carer support sessions are well attended and valued by our carers. You can meet some of our carers and see what they have to say here.
Training and development
Training is a great opportunity for carers to gain and share knowledge. At Eastern Fostering Services, we offer excellent training and development. This allows our carers to build on their knowledge and expertise, enabling them to grow in confidence and resilience. You can find out more about our training here.
Putting the fun into fostering
We offer a range of other events to our foster carers. These include regular family days out and events for birth children. Foster carers, children and birth families all enjoy the activities we put on and these are another opportunity to build community and support for our carers and their families.
Financial Support
Foster carers are paid a fostering allowance to help them provide for the children they care for. Eastern Fostering Services offer a competitive fostering allowance. The amount paid will vary on the specific and individual needs of the child. To give you a rough idea, the range is usually between £450 and £500 per week.
I’m thinking of fostering. What support is there for me?
At Eastern Fostering Services, we believe in supporting our carers from the very beginning of their journeys. When you are considering fostering, you will need good information and an opportunity to evaluate your circumstances and needs. We host regular Fostering Information Events which you can find posted on our Facebook page.
