Support with parenting

Formal kinship care is when the local authority places a child with a family member or close friend. In these cases, the carer will go through a fostering assessment with a dedicated social worker from the fostering team. This process usually takes around 12 weeks and includes full support and training to prepare for the role.

What to expect as a kinship foster carer

As a kinship foster carer, you’ll be supported every step of the way. Your responsibilities may include:

• Attending training sessions
• Keeping daily care logs
• Participating in meetings

You’ll be assigned a supervising social worker to guide and support you in your role.

Support Available to Kinship Foster Carers

As an approved carer with us, you will receive:

• Financial support
• Dedicated kinship social workers for supervision and day-to-day guidance
• Community Clusters – local peer support groups to share experiences
• Group sessions focused on parenting and emotional wellbeing
• Training and development – access to our training catalogue and free online courses via Kinship.org