Looking Into Fostering – But Unsure Which Agency to Go With?

[YourPearlTurtle]

Hi everyone,

My partner and I have been seriously considering fostering — something we’ve thought about for years, but now feels like the right time. We don’t have kids of our own but both work with children, and the idea of offering a stable home really resonates with us.

We’re especially interested in long-term fostering, but choosing the right agency is proving tricky. There are so many, and they all sound similar online.

If you’ve fostered or looked into fostering, which agency did you go with — and would you recommend them?

We’re in the North West (Preston) and would really appreciate any recommendations or experiences — good or bad.

Also open to any helpful blogs or resources. Thanks! 💙

Why are you looking at an agency rather than local authority?

Are you /dh planning on giving up work/ taking leave?

I would suggest contacting your local authority’s fostering service first and go to one of their information sessions.
It’s the LA who places the children and will use their own carers first before they go to an agency, to keep the children in-house and because of the costs to the LA for using agency placements.

Try looking at Capstone Foster Care - they have an office in Manchester and a training hub in Preston.

I’ve been with them for years and they’ve been great. They got Outstanding at their last Ofsted.

Go with your Local Authority! My foster children's siblings are with IFA carers. I have much better support than them, and comparable money.

We're still open to both agency and local authority — just trying to understand the differences and what support each offers. We're not planning to give up work fully but can be flexible, so we’re looking into what options fit best with that.

Thanks, that makes sense! We’ll definitely look into the LA first and check out one of their info sessions. It’s helpful to know how the placement process works and why they prioritise in-house carers.

Thanks so much for the suggestion! I’ll definitely check out Capstone — sounds like you’ve had a really good experience with them.
Have you heard of Sunbeam Fostering by any chance? They also have support in the North West, and we’re considering them too. Just wondering if anyone has any experience with them?

Thanks for sharing! It’s really helpful to hear that support can be better with the Local Authority. We’re definitely going to look into that more closely now.

You will need to have a lot of flexibility with work, the amount of appointments, meetings, time supporting the child, following up on making sure that the support is in place e.g. school have done everything they should have, birth family visitation and contact etc is demanding. Basically consider your role as emotional support human and personal assistant for that child 24/7 - it’s intense. Trying to work on top of that is hard. Most people I know who foster either don’t work or are freelance in creative work (painting, ceramics, writing) to fit around the child’s needs.

Thanks so much for the honest insight — that really helps. I can see how important it is to be fully available for the child. I’m looking into a few agencies right now. Have you or anyone you know ever worked with Sunbeam Fostering? Just curious to know how supportive they are.

I’m with NFG. They took over our small agency.
I liked it when I was part of a small team but I must admit support is now a lot better.
They run lots of support groups and activities for carers, we have breakfasts and lunches at local restaurants, well being days, spa days, escape rooms etc.
They also take the kids to trampoline parks, ninja warriors, play centres and organise movie nights with pizza.
There is a dedicated education dept to help with school and EHCPs
I think the payments are around the same as LA but the support is a lot better.
In 13 years I’ve had 4 social workers
my child has had 10 from the LA
my child is long term but other carers have short term, babies, sibling groups or provide respite
So every type of fostering is covered.
Im north-west

I'd recommend Capstone Foster Care too. They have lots of support and really great staff which makes a massive difference when fostering.

I see you are interested in Sunbeam and while I don't have experience of them they are based down south and it is nicer to have an agency located within your area or at least your region because of things like admin, support groups and other carer benefits.