Fostering children can be difficult, but it can also be a rewarding and fulfilling experience for individuals who are enthusiastic about transforming children’s lives. After you’ve been authorised to foster, the matching process begins, in which Nationwide Fostering uses your fostering portfolio to match you with a child we believe you’d be most suited to care for.

Before the matching process begins, you will be given a thorough explanation of the procedure and requested to sign a foster care agreement. You’ll be assigned your own Supervising Social Worker at the same time.

You may have various questions regarding how fostering works and what fostering children entails at this point.

The following are some of the most frequently asked questions:

I’ve been approved for fostering children. How long before a child is placed with us?

This will be determined by a variety of things, including your abilities and flexibility.

You can accept or reject any recommendation offered by Nationwide Fostering, and you can also say no at this point if you don’t believe you’re the right person to care for a particular kid.

We’ll talk further about it with you to see what we can do.

How does the matching process work?

Please see below some of the matching considerations:

Child Qualities

During the matching process, we normally examine the following factors:

• Does the youngster have any siblings?

Is there a strong reason why the siblings shouldn’t be grouped together?

• The age of the child
• The location of their school
• The chance of parental or extended family influence
• Any behavioural issues that may occur
• The child’s culture/language/racial identity/religion
• Health/medical factors
• Risk assessment
• Whether the child would be better off in a two-parent family
• Attachment needs/patterns
• Leisure activities and hobbies

Foster Carer Qualities

• The size and character of the foster family
• The foster home’s location or distance from the child’s home
• The foster family’s culture/language/race/religion
• The foster carer’s skills and experience
• Child care requirements
• Accommodation and domestic setup
• Registration
• Vulnerabilities and risks

Is fostering children always challenging or difficult?

Not all foster children are difficult or challenging in their behaviour, but it’s vital to realise that they are going through a terrible time in their lives, and this is upsetting to them.

As a result, they may need to be treated with care, and a foster caregiver should keep in mind that all children cope with stress and loss in various ways.

Foster caregivers can receive training from Nationwide Fostering to help them deal with these issues.

What if we don’t get on with the children?

Not all foster children are difficult or challenging in their behaviour, but it’s vital to realise that they are going through a terrible time in their lives, and this is upsetting to them. As a result, they may need to be treated with care, and a foster caregiver should keep in mind that all children cope with stress and loss in various ways. Foster caregivers can receive training from Nationwide Fostering to help them deal with these issues.

What if we don’t get on with the children?

Some children will take longer to acclimate to their new circumstances than others. If you have a true concern with a child you’re fostering, you should always talk to your social worker about it. If things aren’t going well for you, chances are the youngster is feeling the same way. Caring for that youngster or young person might become easier and more pleasurable with the correct support or training. However, it may be in the best interests of a kid to be placed with another foster family.

Will there be contact with the child’s family?

Foster children frequently have contact with their biological parents.

We believe that the bond between a child and a parent is critical to the kid’s well-being, regardless of why they came into care in the first place.

Can fostering children lead to adoption?

Fostering children can lead to adoption in some cases, but the primary goal is to give children with temporary care for as long as they require it.

When it comes to adoption, the child will always come first, which could indicate that there is a family that would be better suited to act as adoptive parents.