Fostering - Your questions answered

This section explains what happens next, once you've decided to foster a child. Applying to become a foster carer takes approximately six months.

Sometimes the process can seem daunting and includes preparation training, medicals, references and home study.

The assessment is thorough to ensure that we recruit carers who can meet the needs of the children in our care.

Step one

Contact us to discuss your interest in fostering.

Step two

A social worker will visit you at home to discuss the training and assessment process and whether fostering is right for you. After gathering more information we will make a decision about whether we feel fostering is right for you.

Step three

You will be invited to attend the preparation training course. This will help you to understand more about the needs of young people who need to be fostered. We will also need, by law, to carry out police and other reference checks including medicals, health and education.

Step four

Your assessment, also known as home study, will begin. This allows us to learn more about you and your family and the qualities and experience that you have that will help you become a foster carer.

Step five

Together with your social worker you will compile the assessment report and will be asked to give us your opinion about the accuracy of the report. Your social worker will, in consultation with yourself, state the number, age and gender of children you would like to foster.

Step six

Your completed assessment will be discussed at the Fostering Panel. The panel is made up of people who have a personal or professional connection with fostering, such as foster carers, teachers and social workers.

If you wish, you will be able to attend the fostering panel although it will not count against you if you do not. The panel will make a recommendation about whether you should be approved as a foster

carer. This is then considered and a decision is made by the head of Children's Services in Gateshead, who is the agency decision maker. You will be sent written confirmation of this decision.

Step seven

If you are approved as a foster carer, you are linked with a social worker who will discuss with you children who need to be fostered. If you are not approved as a foster carer your social worker will explain the reasons for this and how you can appeal about this decision.

Step eight

After you are approved as a foster carer a meeting will be held every year. The meeting is called a `Foster Carer Review' and considers your continuing approval as a foster carer, for example whether your approval status should be amended.

You may wish to alter the age group of children you foster, or the number of children you care for.