At UK Fostering we feel it’s important that our foster carers are treated as professionals and that we pay a competitive foster carer allowance for their work and skills. This allows them to feel valued and appreciated for the challenging work they do.
Our foster carers are paid a weekly allowance, per child, ranging from £377* per week or significantly higher for a child remanded into care or a child with special needs. This is significantly above the government’s minimum fostering allowances which are currently in place.
What does the fostering allowance cover?
The Fostering Allowance is in effect a foster carer payment, and includes payment for each carer’s skills and commitment as well as an allowance for the maintenance side of fostering.
The maintenance element of this allowance includes:
• expenses for clothes
• pocket money and savings
• food
• leisure activities
• most school transport
At UK Fostering we also add an additional payment to the allowance for children’s birthdays, religious or cultural festivals (Festival allowance) and a respite allowance.
Fostering allowance payments
Our foster carers receive payment promptly and at an agreed day, on a weekly basis. We issue a weekly statement of the payments to each carer and ensure that our carers have access to an accountant who can advise them on any finance or tax related questions.
It is also worth noting that several years ago, the government introduced favourable tax benefits for foster carers, and according to the Inland Revenue, all foster carers are deemed to be self employed.
If you’d like to get more information, or you have any queries about the fostering allowance, we’re happy to give you all the help you need. Please contact us on 0345 222 0518 .
*This is an older blog and foster carer’s allowances have since been regularly increased.