Fostering as a career

There are several misconceptions about working/fostering life balance. Despite the time and dedication required to fostering, you still can keep a full-time job.

Many foster carers can balance the responsibilities of caring for a foster child with their work commitments. Fostering a child can require a sizable time commitment because you'll be responsible for meeting the child's requirements and creating a nurturing environment for them.

You may need to be flexible with your work schedule to attend meetings and appointments related to the child's care, and you may need to work with your employer to find a suitable arrangement that allows you to fulfil your responsibilities as a foster carer.

It is also a good idea to discuss your plans to foster a child with your employer before you begin the process so that you can understand any potential impacts on your job and make any necessary arrangements in advance.

Foster caring is a time-consuming role, not just in terms of raising a child/family, but also in terms of all the work that goes on behind the scenes (report writing, handling paperwork, contributing to fostering reviews, liaising with a number of social, health and education professionals). 

Foster carers receive a fostering allowance that is considered enough to cover the costs of looking after a child in foster care. This should include basic things such as clothing, food and pocket money – however, there will be some flexibility around how this is spent when it comes to your family dynamic. 

In most cases, it is unrealistic for a foster carer to be expected to give up their steady income to become a stay-at-home parent. Each foster case will be handled differently, focusing on the needs and requirements of the individual that’s being fostered. There are a number of factors that could come into discussion when talking about your working life whilst looking to foster a child; such as will you be a single carer, is your employment full or part-time, what hours will you be working and so on.. 

Foster carers are expected to look after their children and be able to provide the time to care for them whenever required to do so. This would include things such as attending parents evenings or school meetings, looking after them after school hours and supporting them with homework where appropriate, as well as supporting them emotionally through their ups and downs, or even staying in contact with the child’s biological family. 

If you’re considering becoming a foster carer as a couple (who both work full time) you would often have more flexibility than a single carer (simply due to having an extra set of hands available if one parent couldn’t make a specific calendar appointment). Having two individuals in the picture helps lighten the load – particularly if you’re looking to maintain a full-time job.