Fostering Support
At Changing Futures Fostering, we’ll work hard to give you as much help, guidance and support as we possibly can. Our not-for-profit fostering agency supports foster parents across the North East, and unlike larger fostering Agencies, we’re a locally based team, making us accessible for any advice or support you may need. We also understand that when you feel supported, the children feel supported, too!
Supporting You Every Step
At Changing Futures Fostering, we’re committed to providing the guidance and resources you need to care for young people across the North East. Here’s how we support you:
- Short Break Care: Up to 18 days annually. If unused, the cash value is paid to you.
- Financial Extras: Birthday and summer holiday payments, totaling £560–£620 per child each year.
- Therapeutic Training: Practical tools and insights created by foster parents and young people with care experience.
- Mentorship: Pairing you with an experienced foster parent who offers real-life advice and support.
- Supervising Social Worker: Monthly (or biweekly in your first year) tailored guidance and support.
- 24/7 Assistance: Around-the-clock access to trained staff for any urgent needs.
- Education Support: Help finding schools, securing extra academic assistance, and ensuring the best educational opportunities for fostered children.
- Child Mentoring and Befriending: Referrals for trusted adults to meet with fostered children biweekly, providing fun experiences and relationship-building opportunities.
We are here every step of the way to ensure you and your foster child succeed together.
Support Networks:
Parents live in communities, and most families have a network of people around them to help them bring up the children and support the adults. We work with you to help you build the right support networks for you.
In addition to the support networks you already have in your families, friendship circles and your local community, we help you build relationships with other foster parents in our fostering community. They understand the unique challenges that come from being a foster carer, and many can give you a sympathetic ear, a shoulder to cry on, and often some practical advice and insights based on their own experiences. We support newer foster parents with a mentor or buddy, which helps them progress in their fostering role.
Other Support:
Foster parents can access information and support from us and from a variety of other agencies. These include:
- The Fostering Network, one of the UK’s leading fostering charities
- Fosterline is a free helpline and website funded by the Department for Education, offering advice, information and support on all issues related to fostering. Calls to the advice line are free!
- Foster Talk is an independent, non-profit organisation. They give professional support services to foster parents.
For more information on any of the fostering support available, please click here to contact us at Changing Futures Fostering!
I am excited at the thought of being able to bond enough with a child that they can feel safe and cared for with us as a family. The training you get at Changing Futures Fostering is also very therapeutic to you and your own family. It helps you understand each others behaviour, behaviours that you have lived with forever. It's been an added bonus for us as we have got so much out of that! I'm excited to see where all this takes us.
- Clare's Fostering Experience
What happens next?
When you get in touch with us it’s an opportunity for you to ask questions, raise queries and talk about how you see fostering fitting in with your family. It’s also an opportunity for us to ask a few questions about how you will fit fostering emotionally and physically into your life. At this stage all we are trying to do is invest some time together to see if being a foster parent is the right fit for you.
