Why foster with Barnardo’s?

When you change a childhood, you change a life. Imagine the difference you could make when you welcome a child into your home and let them know they can feel like they belong.  

We're here to help you be the person who can make a positive change to a child or young person's life. As the UK’s most experienced fostering agency, we’ll be right by your, and your foster child’s, side. You’ll get a dedicated support worker, expert training, competitive financial support and a lovely member of our team at the end of the phone on our round-the-clock helpline ready to help you, any time of day or night. 

Here are just a few reasons why we’d love you to consider choosing us to foster with. 

When you begin your fostering journey you’ll take part in our preparation course to help you develop the skills you might need. You’ll get the chance to meet other future foster carers as well as people who have been through the process and are happy to share their fostering journeys. This means you can learn from each other and build your support network.  

Once you start, you’ll have a dedicated and qualified social worker, as well as access to our 24-hour advice and support line.  

Sometimes children who have had a lot of different people look after them, or have had difficult early life experiences, can find it hard to trust adults. That’s why our workers who are trained in Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP) will help you support the child or young person in your care. DDP involves working closely with parents and/or carers to help the child or young person feel more emotionally secure. The therapy helps them learn to trust again.  

Each year there’s a chance to review things and make sure you and the children in your care are always receiving the support they need. You’ll also benefit from further training helping you build your confidence and gain new skills. We offer support groups and family social events so you and your foster children can spend time with other families in the same boat. 

We want the children and young people fostered through us to find long-term, loving homes they can thrive in. Sometimes this means them moving from being part of a foster family to being adopted by another. When this happens, children can experience feelings of loss and separation. To try and limit this we follow the University of East Anglia’s Moving to Adoption Process and place the child’s emotional needs at the centre of everything we do. We’ll also support you as their foster carers and the prospective adoptive parents. We understand that as much as you’ll be happy to see a child you’ve cared for move to a forever home, that it can be hard to see them leave and we’ll make sure you’re supported.   

You’ll also benefit from membership with The Fostering Network, a body which represents foster carers in the UK. Your membership gives you access to an informative website, regular newsletters and discounted training.   

Read more about our training and support for foster carers. 

We know that choosing to become a foster carer is a big decision and how much money you’ll receive is an important factor to consider. We offer foster carers generous financial support, including a taxable income, as well as a weekly fostering allowance to help with the cost of caring for a child. 

Find out more about the financial support available to foster carers.

You can find our fostering services across the UK. Your local fostering team would be very happy to talk to you and answer any questions you might have. Find your local fostering service.

We’ve been successfully matching and providing homes for children and young people with the right families for over 100 years. 

You’ll get the support of our dedicated social workers who have a wealth of experience and knowledge. They’ll use it to make sure you, and the children in your care, all get the support you need.