Thinking about fostering

[PrincessScrumpy]

dh and I would love to foster (under 5s), but currently I work and am pg, so it's something we'd like to do when dc are older.

What kind of financial help do you get? We're not doing it for the money, but I'd have to give up work so need to know roughly how much worse off we'd be.

Also, is emergency care completely heartbreaking? I think I'm going to have to toughen up.

Sop thinking and go for it. Fostering is so rewarding and you are more than compensated for your work.
Some Local authorities do not pay as much as independant fostering agencies but you can earn up to £53,000 of allowances working for LA tax free. Also, foster carers for LA have more choice of placements and all the background information.
It will take between 6-12 months to work through the process to become registered. Not because it is difficult, just it takes a while to get everything processed, CRB checks etc.
Emergency care is the term our LA uses when a child is placed with no warning, not because the child is in a particularly more serious situaion than a planned placement.
The heartbreaking part is when a child leaves, but even that is worth the upset for the security you can offer a child, and much better than hearing about another abused child or death on the news.

I'm currently pg so it'll be in a few years. The fact dh is on the same page as me is great, but we do think we'd probably end up adopting the first child we care for!

Financially we're not looking to "rake it in", just be able to cover bills.

Get rich quick is certainly not a term used in fostering, LA or IFA. I have yet to meet anyone doing it "for the money". But that's no reason to not expect your expenses to be covered.

I do know of someone who adopted her first sibling placements but that was great too. She couldn't bear to give them up, but who cares, the little girls have a new fantastic family.

Keep thinking about it and get an applictaion form sooner rather than later.