Newbie with some questions!

[SingleMumAndProud]

I am hoping to start fostering soon. I have been in contact with my local authority and they said everything sounds fine except for my recent seperation from my husband so I have to wait a couple of months before continuing with the application process, which I am fine with.

The main questions I have (I have read through some threads here already which has been a great help):

1/ What are the main differences between fostering through an agency and through a LA?

2/ Money - I am now living on benefits. Does anybody know how this would effect them? I have always wanted to foster so please don't think I am just in it for the money! But I need to know that things will be OK financially. And what is the actual weekly money for? Does all of it have to go towards the foster child, or can it just generally go towards living expences too? Obviously providing that the foster child has everything they need as well! Basically, if I wasn't fostering, I would be Childminding.

3/ The LA have said that because my children are 1 and 2 years, I have to have children that are 2 years older or younger than my own, so could only foster for 4 years +. Is this normal? I am much more experienced with little ones so I would ideally prefer to do under 3s. My youngest should be 2 by the time I foster, so I am hoping they will allow me to take on newborns too.

4/ Am I mad? I am a single mum to 2 toddlers and really want to foster!

hi there.
Im probably as new to this as you are.
Im not overly sure about the benefits either - as i am currently on them and being told different things by the lone parent advisor and the sw.
The lpa said that i could still claim inc support as the fostering is seen as a non-profit- paid job, but the sw said that she is sure that i will not get inc support as the local authority (in scotland) pay about £128 for the 'child allowance' and a further £200 for the 'fosterers fee'.
Im also under the assumption that you only get paid for when you have a placement, so that is my own personal worry........as im the sole provider in my house, for my own 3 children (17, 15 and 12) - it could be a big financial worry if there is a few months where i have no placements.
But i am still not put off and have just sent my application away.
If i dont apply and let little issues put me off, i will always regret it. - so, looking on the positive, i am used to living on barely any money , so am hoping that i can still manage when fostering.
Although i do have parents to turn to that will help financially if need be.
hope that has been of some help although there are bound to be others on the forum that know a lot more.

HI there
I'm also a single mum to a 2 year old and have been told the same,that there needs to be a 2 year age gap. I'm fine with that as at the moment I wouldn't want to foster newborns (only just started sleeping through the night !) so a 4 year + would be great.

I'm not on benefits but am self employed and don't earn a great wage.
I'm going through the LA as initially I want to do emergency and respite. They have told me I get paid even if I don't have a placement but I'm not exactly sure how much
I think it's between £150 - £200 pw when I have a placement.

It is taking along time though, I initially applied at the end of last year. I have done the course and all the refs and forms have been sent off so I am now waiting for a sw to be allocated to me and then they come and do in depth interviews at home.
I finished the course in April so have been waiting along time.
Like Lorrmill said there will be those along with alot more experience

and do I think you're mad? no just very brave with 2 toddlers and wanting to look after a newborn!! Let us know how you get on.

Hi all
I am also a complete newbie to this, and have been trying to do lots of research, but there seem to be loads of differnt agenices, and I am not sure which one seems to be the best to go with......

any advice would be helpful?

I still think that we have a long way to go

Hi Valentine
I decided to go with the local authority as I want to do emergency and respite.
The LA told me that is is usually the harder to place children that are placed through an agency.
good luck, let us know how you get on

hi. Yep - i was also told that - about the outside agencies basically getting the harder to place children.
Also -when the local authority find that their own pool of fosterers are full - they approach the independant agencies to see if they can take a child. These agencies charge the la a lot of money - (and thats why they are able to pay their fosterers a larger sum of money) - and so the local authority will only approach them if they have exhausted every other avenue.

I think this was the jist of what my sw was telling me a while back.

Local authority foster carers will almost never be without a placement. The allowances should be roughly similar as what agencies pay, but agencies charge a hefty fee to the LA so LAs will always use in house carers first. If no in house carers are available or suitable, they will go to an agency. IMO the in house carers tend to have the long term placements, and children that bounce around tend to be with agency carers. Not sure why that is really. You should get good support with an agency, possibly better than your LA but they do vary. Ideologically I think it's preferable to foster for the LA, as obviously it's their budgets that pay the fees, and in house carers cost about 1/3-1/2 of what agency carers cost. Since it's all taxpayers money, and what is spent on one thing gets cut elsewhere, I think it's preferable to save the LA some cash myself!

I have 30 years experience as a social worker and team manager in fostering and adoption and am recently retired. I will try to answer some of the queries. Firstly the OP - I really think you should delay fostering until your children are older. The thing is all the children needing fostering will to a greater or lesser extent be traumatised, and for a 4 year old to have to compete with 2 little ones isn't really a good thing. Fostered children really need to be the youngest in the family so that they get the attention they need.

The difference between fostering for a l.a and and IFA (independent fostering agency or private - means the same thing) is that if you foster for the l.a. you are as someone else has said, will usually have a steady series of placements (though this of course depends on your "offer") the greatest need is for middle years aged children, sibling groups and children with disabilities. Having said that many under 2s are also placed with temporary foster carers.

Also as ENM has said l.a.s will only use an IFA as a very last resort because they are so expensive. Carers for IFAs get paid more than l.a. carers but in addition the IFAs charge the l.a. a huge amount of money to the l.a. for the placement.

ENM - couldn't agree more with your sentiments about fostering for the l.a. as the IFAs are just making huge profits and also carers can often ask to care for children with very difficult behaviour who lives in any area of the country. So if you live in Cornwall you might get a child from Dundee - seriously - because when l.a.s cannot finsd any in-house placement they have to use an IFA and place the child where the IFAs hve carers available. Needless to say this creates extra trauma for children - placed miles away from their parents and extended family and having to change schools etc. If you foster forthe l.a. you will only foster children in the county in which you live.

The reason children are moved about in IFA placements is I'm afraid a financial one. As soon as an in house placement becomes available the IFA child is moved into that placement (if at all possible) to save the l.a. money. It is dreadful to be using children like this but I'm afraid successive governments have encouraged privatisation in all aspects of our lives and this of course is privatisation of fostering. I know of people who started up IFAs some 10 years ago who are millionaires.

Finally re the tax position. It does vary I think between different local authorities and local tax offices. My understanding is that you cannot be taxed on the fostering allowance (the part paid for the day to day expenses of the child) but could be taxed on the "reward element" or "fee" but in the county I worked for we managed to get the local tax office to agree that fostering allowances and fees were not taxable, but you would need to consult with your own l.a. about it as there are differing arrangements in place. Also things may have changed since I retired.

Good luck to you all - as you know there is a huge shortage of foster carers - but stick with the l.a. is my advice.