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Which fostering agency should I choose?

How to choose a fostering agency

In England there are 152 local authority fostering providers and over 300 independent fostering providers. The number of providers available can lead to confusion for people interested in fostering and could even lead to ‘decision paralysis’ (having to many options to feel confident about making a choice). This short guide will help you to pick a suitable provider by taking you through a series of simple steps:

  1. Contact your local authority. You can only choose one local authority based on the area that you live in. Search for your local authority provider by entering the following into a search engine (e.g. Google) – ‘local authority fostering’ and the name of your town/city e.g. ‘Local authority fostering Manchester’. In the search results, look for a website with the suffix ‘.gov.uk’.

  2. Do another search for ‘fostering agency’ and the town or city that you live in. Create a list of fostering providers that show up.

  3. Search for fostering providers in your area on Google maps.

  4. Search for fostering providers on www.TeamAroundYou.org

Sparks Fostering covers the whole of England.

You can arrange to speak with and/or meet as many fostering providers as possible and you shouldn’t feel pressured into proceeding with any provider until you feel ready. Fostering is a very significant commitment so you should do all you can to make sure that you’ve found the best option for you.

You may filter your list by looking through Ofsted reports. New applicants would be unwise to join providers rated as ‘inadequate’ because that provider may be at risk of closing and/or may struggle to place children with their carers. You may wish to read reports of providers with any other rating (requires improvement/good/outstanding) and check if the providers’ approach fits your needs.

When you speak with the fostering providers, they will ask you some questions, which are all listed on

The provider will also ask if you have questions. Some applicants feel awkward asking questions, but you are welcome to say that you are using a list that was suggested to you:

  1. How long do your assessments take on average to get to panel? No provider can give you a definitive answer about how long your assessment will take because it largely depends on how quick you are to complete your paperwork and how long it takes for checks to be returned; however, providers should give you guideline timescales.

  2. How do you compare with other providers? Strong providers will be happy to be transparent about the differences between themselves and other providers. Also, they won’t feel the need to insult or belittle other providers.

  3. What training do you offer during and after assessment? Some providers (such as Sparks Fostering) offer their main training online and during supervision (offering a high degree of flexibility for carers), whereas other providers expect attendance at a minimum number of face-to-face training days.

  4. How many foster carers do each social worker support? Lower numbers mean that each foster carer gets more support.

  5. Do you have support workers? If so, how many fostering families are allocated to each support worker?

  6. What fees do you give? Most fostering providers have a scale which means that newer carers get lower fees, even if they are caring for children with complex needs; whereas Sparks Fostering gives a fixed % of the local authority fees to carers.

  7. What additional allowances do you provide?

You should also consider how responsive the provider has been since you made initial contact. If it takes several days for the provider to respond to you or move you along the application process, it may indicate that the provider will be slow to get you through the assessment. It may also indicate that support after approval will be poor.

Finally, keep a record of all the research that you’ve done just in case you want to change providers for any reason in the future. Sadly many foster carers leave fostering because of poor support from their fostering provider – this should never happen because there are many excellent fostering providers who offer great support.