Family Care backs Government Plans to Tackle 10% Fall in Foster Carers Nationwide

Leading Foster Care provider Family Care is backing the national Government plans to tackle a dramatic 10% drop in foster carers across England in the last 5 years.
 
Latest figures provided by the Education Sector regulator Ofsted show that up to March 2025, there were 33,435 fostering households in England, which marks a 10 per cent decline in the number of available carers since 2021.

In response, the Government has announced plans for a package of reforms to try and tackle the growing shortage of foster carers in England, with the aim of increasing the number of foster places available for children and doing more to retain existing foster carers.
 
Family Care Group, based in Chorley, Lancashire and currently providing 41 fostering homes for children across the North West of England and the West Midlands, is fully supporting the plans and says action has to be taken soon to try and reverse the decline in available carers.
 
A lack of available foster homes can push children into residential care, where they have worse expected outcomes in education, health and long-term prospects, as highlighted in the recent Casey Audit published last year. This can also leave them potentially more vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. It can also lead to children being moved from their local area, with the added disruption of changing schools and other issues.
 
The new Government proposals to tackle the growing shortage of foster carers include plans to expand the criteria for who can become foster carers and to provide better support for carers to be able to fit fostering around their busy and working family lives.
 
It is hoped these reforms will help to increase the pool of potential foster carers, giving more children the chance to find a foster home, as well as boosting the support available for existing foster carers.

Dana Marrett, Fostering Registered Manager for Family Care Group said: “The fall in the number of available foster carers since 2021 is alarming and yet we feel it could be avoided if more people could be encouraged to take up fostering and appreciate the tremendous benefits it can bring to a child’s life and their own life.
 
“The Government’s plans to improve the support available to foster carers and widen the criteria for those thinking of fostering are certainly an important step in the right direction and we welcome those moves.
 
“It is vital that a child in care can have access to a safe, supportive and loving home environment, and by having more foster carers available, it can hopefully provide that security and support for a lot more children.”
 
Further details on the Government’s new proposals can be found here: Government pledges to reverse decline in foster carer numbers - GOV.UK
 
Further details on the Casey Audit report are available here: National Audit on Group-based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse - GOV.UK

Foster carer Jen Gibbons, from Stockport, who has been a foster carer for over 12 years, believes some people may be fearful about being rejected as foster carers when thinking of applying.
 
She said: “In some cases, people may talk themselves out of applying because they don’t know what the role actually involves. They may feel, for example, because they are a single person, that they will be deemed unsuitable, but this is not the case. Fostering can be a lot more suitable for people than they realise.”

Carer Kay McKenny from Nelson in Lancashire, said: “When I first applied to be a foster carer,I had recently started working in a primary school, and I began asking myself why there are not more foster carers available to look after vulnerable children.
 
“I knew I wanted to make a difference to the situations some children have to face daily, and since becoming a foster carer myself, I’ve been able to do that. I see carers like me as ordinary people just wanting to try help children feel safe and secure.”

Dana Marrett adds, “We would encourage anyone considering fostering not to rule themselves out. If you think you can’t do it because you’re a single parent, working, living with a disability or other issues, you may well find you are actually suitable.

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