Long term foster carers are required where it has not been possible to return a child to their birth family. These children tend to be older. They understand they cannot live with their own family but will still have a sense of identity with them and may maintain some limited contact.
When a child is placed with a family on a long term fostering basis it is anticipated the child will grow up with the foster carers and remain there until the time is right to move on to independence. While the day to day decisions which affect the child will be made by you as the foster carer, some decisions, such as a trip abroad, will require consultation and permission from social work officers.
One of the main objectives of long term fostering would be to provide care for the child throughout their childhood and to provide a safe and stable environment to enable him or her to grow both physically and emotionally and to reach their full potential. Long term foster carers, like other foster carers, require to work alongside other professional staff in order to further the plan for the child.
In many situations long term foster carers will also be required to facilitate and support some form of contact between the child and the birth family, if this is deemed to be in the child’s best interest.
Foster carers must be over 21, can be single, married, widowed, divorced or cohabiting in a stable relationship. You may or may not be in employment, but if working you need to have sufficient time and flexibility to meet the needs of a child. Children who are accommodated are likely to have some emotional and behavioural difficulties due to their early experiences. Long term carers need to have patience; understanding and resourcefulness in the process of helping the child overcome them.
