Fostering is a social good. When done by people who love children and want to help them in any way that they can, it can be a highly rewarding system that gives kids a second chance. Just as with everything, there are those who use and abuse the system. Every country needs more caring individuals who go into fostering with the right idea and mindset.
You do get compensated to foster kids, but this compensation is not an income. It should instead be used to cover living and caring costs for your charges. Understanding what type of compensation you are looking at and working out if it’s feasible to care for a child with that compensation in your area is one of the first things you should do when considering becoming a foster parent. If you can take on a kid within that budget, you will then want to go to fosterplus.co.uk to learn the next steps.
How much do you get compensated as a foster parent?
How much you get compensated depends on the situation. The amount of money usually depends on the age of the child and any special requirements they might have, it also varies between countries, so knowing what one country pays is not going to be helpful if you live in another one. Obviously, the cost of living varies across a country, so although the compensation might be adequate in one area, in another, you might struggle to make ends meet.
You can usually foster up to four children at a time. How many you can foster will depend on the size of your home and living facilities, your experience and terms of approval, and the needs of the children.
What the compensation is supposed to cover
Compensation should cover the increase in your bills, the increased cost of food, the cost of clothes or school supplies for your charges, and even the cost of some after-school activities.
When you take on fostering full-time, you can even use it to help you cover living expenses for everyone in the household rather than just the increase in costs for the child you foster. Plus, with full-time fostering, you might also be caring for several children at once, which you will receive financial support for.
What the compensation should not cover
The compensation you receive should not cover personal gifts to yourself. Having a remote part-time job or having a partner that still works should instead be the income source used for purchases that don’t focus on the kids.
How to further protect your finances as a foster parent
There are many different kinds of fostering, which means that you can approach it either on an ad-hoc, part-time, or full-time basis. With the exception of working as a full-time foster parent, you will need to have a job on the side. A good option today would be one that is fully remote so that you are there and present for the kids in your charge.
Budgeting properly can also help you comfortably care for your finances without dipping into your own income stream or savings. If you are a full-time foster parent, however, you will need to be very good at budgeting to ensure that your costs are covered and you still have money to splurge on the kids in question. If you have a partner and they still work, try to use their income as savings and as fun money, and leave the foster compensation as a way to cover the living and caring costs.
