Fostering Allowance • Foster Care Payments • Family Care Group

Fostering Allowances
and Rewards

Foster carers deserve to feel valued and appreciated for their hard work.

At Family Care, we’re committed to providing ongoing support and recognition to our carers, because we understand that their dedication and care make a real difference in the lives of young people.

How much do Foster Carers get paid?

At Family Care, we believe that our amazing carers deserve to be compensated fairly for their important work.

That’s why we offer a combination of a ‘boarding-out’ fee, which is based on the government’s national minimum rates (between £154 – £233 per week), and a professional fee.

This means our foster carers can earn between £407 – £750 per week, depending on the age and needs of the young person they care for and the type of fostering provided.

Check out the table to see the total fostering allowance per week for each age group. We want to make sure our carers feel valued for their dedication and hard work, and we believe this fair compensation is one way to do just that.

For children with complex needs and/or disabilities, foster careers may be entitled to enhanced payments. Enhanced fostering allowances can go as high as £750 per week.

Age Group	Total Fostering Allowance (per week)
0-4 years	£407 - £449
5-10 years	£423 - £465
11-15 years	£451 - £492
16+ years	£495 - £536

The breakdown of fostering allowances

We believe that it’s important to recognise and compensate our foster cares for the amazing work they do. That’s why we provide our carers with a fostering allowance that’s broken down into two parts: a boarding-out fee and a professional fee.

The boarding-out fee is paid to cover the daily costs of caring for a young person and is based on the government’s national minimum rates. This includes everything from activities and hobbies, transport for school, family time and health appointments, to pocket money and savings.

The professional fee, on the other hand, recognises the unique skills and expertise of our foster carers and is based on their registration level. We offer three grades, and as you gain more experience and develop your skills, you can move up the grades.

To achieve the highest grade, you’ll need to complete a training program that culminates with a Level 3 Diploma for the Children’s and Young People’s Workforce – which we fully fund!

Are foster carers exempt from paying tax?

You can benefit from a fixed-tax exemption of up to £18,140 per year, shared equally among approved carers in the household. Plus, you’ll receive tax relief for every week a child is in your care.

You should have registered as self-employed when you started to foster and you will need to file tax returns.

In your tax return, you’ll be able to claim:

A tax exemption of up to £18,140 per household
Tax relief for every week you foster a child

Here’s an example to show you how it works:

Laura fosters a 14-year-old for the whole year and an 8-year-old for 10 weeks. She doesn’t have to pay tax on the first £25,000 she earns from fostering. It’s easy to see how this tax relief can add up and make a real difference for foster families.

Remember, it’s your responsibility to register as self-employed and pay income tax and national insurance. But, to make things easier, we offer membership to Foster Talk for accountancy and tax advice.

Rewards for our foster carers

In return for your hard work and dedication to making a difference to children’s lives, we offer a number of benefits and rewards to our foster carers.

Two weeks-annual leave:

As a thank you for your hard work, you’ll receive up to two-weeks of annual leave entitlement (pro-rata) every year. We want to ensure that our foster carers feel valued and supported as they provide the love and care that our children need to thrive. – this is only for when a child is in placement.

Refer a friend scheme:

Do you know someone who would make a fantastic foster carer and is ready to make a life changing difference? Whether you are a foster carer or not, you can receive a payment of £1,500 if someone you refer successfully becomes a foster carer with Family Care.

Foster carer long service rewards:

As recognition for your hard work and dedication to Family Care, you will receive rewards every 5, 10 and 15 years. We understand how hard our foster carers work and we want to show our appreciation whenever we can! See the rewards you are entitled to below:

5 years receive £250
10 years receive £375
15 years receive £500

24/7 support from a Supervising Social Worker (SSW):

At Family Care, you will always have access to a Duty Supervising Social Worker. This support is available to you 24hrs a day, 7 days a week. Should you ever need help or support (whatever time of the day), our Duty Social Worker will be on-hand to provide help and assistance to you.

Support groups with fellow foster carers:

At Family Care, we understand that becoming a foster carer can be challenging at times. That’s why we have created support groups to ensure our foster carers have someone to speak to on a personal level. Our ‘Carer Reps’ are foster carers with Family Care who regularly host support groups. These are known as ‘Pods’. In these sessions, you are able to talk with like-minded people, as well as raise any queries’ you have. Your Carer Rep will take these questions to management for them to be answered and reported back to you.

Gain Level 3 Diploma for the Children & Young People’s Workforce qualification:

Family Care is also an Approved Centre for City & Guilds, and we offer a number of Diploma options for our Foster Carers, fully funded by Family Care. The first step is for you to gain your Level 3 Diploma for the Children & Young People’s Workforce. This can be started after your first Annual Review with the support of your Supervising Social Worker. You may then progress to the Level 5 Diploma or qualify as an Assessor to assist other candidates with their qualifications.

Support for transferring foster carers

We understand that considering a change in foster agencies can be a tough decision, but we’re here to assure you that, at Family Care, you’ll find a supportive and caring community that puts the needs of our foster families and children first.

Switching to a new fostering provider can be a daunting prospect as it involves finding the right provider that can cater to your personal needs. Although the reasons for wanting to transfer may differ, it can be challenging to navigate through the uncertainty of finding a suitable provider.

At Family Care, we understand this concern, which is why we have provided a list of common reasons foster carers consider transferring.