Thinking of fostering....

[TaffyandTeenyTaffy]

I have a little boy aged 17 months and am currently work 3 days p/w. I would love to foster and always thought DH wouldnt want to (based on the fact that he was not very open to the thought of adoption when we were going through fertility treatment). I casually mentioned this to him as we walked past the council fostering stall at an event at the weekend and got an unexpectedly positive response....so the seed is now firmly planted in my mind.

I basically know what is involved as I am a child care solicitor - working for a LA based about 40mins from where we live - and have a few friends who already foster. I just wonder whether it is practical with our current situation as we are both out of the house from 8am - 5ish with our jobs (me because of travelling - although I do have flexi time). When DS is out of nursery I will probably look at changing jobs nearer home and think that might be a better time.... but in the meantime was wondering about respite.

Can you be approved for just respite? and if so would it just be for weekends - or would they want longer periods too? Is it worth looking into now or should we wait until DS is closer to school age?

Thanks

You can be just approved for respite or possibly for shared care ( usually SN kids for weekend respite). F/t fostering would depend on the child fitting into your family which would be mire limited Ruth you both working although it is possible.

The age of your son may be an issue although it can take a while to be approved.

Yes I used to be a respite carer for years it was really good

You need to to make contact with the respite team they approve you separately to foster carers and you are on the respite team

Basically they see what your families like and match a family top you they give the family a certain amount of hours a month and usually let you and the family decide how its best sliced up

The age of your dc should not be a issue as their are two adults in the home and I would imagine that he is at home on weekdays to one note though I would avoid having children with ADHD until your own dd is older

Hi, have a look at the Short Breaks Network's website for loads of info on becoming a short break foster carer for disabled children (it's not usually called respite these days, but it's the same thing) I've been a short break carer for over 4 years now, and it's fantastic! :)

Lovely, thanks guys - think that it may be a while before we jump in but will be good to do a bit of research....