Lucy Stevens - 14th March 2022
We know that many people across the UK are asking whether they could foster Ukrainian children who may have lost their parents in the War and who may become refugees in the UK.
Currently, in our region, we have yet to see unaccompanied Ukrainian children come into foster care. However, it is fair to say that the longer the war goes on, the more likely this prospect becomes.
Like many local authorities, fostering providers are working largely in the dark, with no guidance from the government and no firm sense of how the situation will impact children’s services. What we do know is that British people want to help and at Eastern Fostering Services, we do too.
The current situation with foster care in the UK.
We say it all the time but let us say it again: there is a serious shortage of foster carers in the UK. Local Authorities and fostering providers are struggling to accommodate the vast number of children who need foster families. There is a real and justified concern that without more foster carers, we are unlikely to have capacity to offer families to unaccompanied refugee children.
Presently, we are assuming that anyone who wishes to foster Ukrainian Refugee children will have to go through the same process of application as anyone else who wants to become a foster carer. This is a process that typically takes around 4 months.
How can I become a foster carer?
- Make enquiries: the Fostering Network has a useful tool to help you find local fostering providers in your local area. We would suggest you ensure that any fostering provider you contact does have offices near to you. Foster carers require a lot of support, training and contact with other carers, so staying local is a good idea. Eastern Fostering Services support carers in Suffolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire.
- Request a home visit from a fostering provider that you feel has an ethos you can share or that you feel comfortable with. You can find out more about what happens during a home visit here.
- If you and the fostering provider wish to proceed, you’ll be asked to complete a fostering application form and this marks the start of the assessment process.
- Your fostering provider will begin all the necessary background checks and will assign an assessor to you.
- Your assessor will make several visits to you in your home. They will spend time understanding your life experiences and attributes all of which will be used to support your application. The Assessor will produce a final report called the Form F.
- You will receive training as part of the Skills to Foster provision. This is usually two days’ training with other prospective foster carers.
- The fostering panel will review your Form F and you will be invited in to meet with them. They will spend time talking to you about your application and your expectations of fostering. Following this session, you will be approved as a foster carer.
One of our carers recently spoke about fostering children who have fled war. If you’d like to listen to the interview, you can do so here (48 mins 30secs in).
You can also get in touch with us if you are interested in fostering and want to ask us your questions. We’d be delighted to speak to you and, for you, it could be the first step in an amazing journey.
Make a difference in the world. Think about fostering. Talk to us. Email info@easternfosteringservices.com call us on 01206 299775 or message us on Facebook.
Eastern Fostering Services - The small agency with a strong family feel
