What happens after I submit my fostering application?

After you submit a fostering application, the agency moves from initial enquiry to formal suitability checks and assessment. The purpose is to build a complete picture of your household, circumstances, skills and capacity to provide safe, consistent care for a child or young person.

The next stage usually involves confirming the information in your application and identifying anything that needs clarification. You may be asked for additional documents or details about your employment, health, finances, relationships, household members, previous experience and reasons for fostering. Being open and accurate is important; information is considered in context rather than in isolation.

As part of the checks, the agency may gather information from relevant organisations and people who know you. This can include:

• Disclosure and Barring Service checks for you and other eligible adults in the household
• local authority and social care checks
• health information from your GP or another appropriate medical professional
• references from employers, personal referees or former partners where relevant
• checks relating to other adults who regularly spend time in your home

The agency will explain which checks apply to your circumstances and how the information will be used. A previous conviction, health condition, change in circumstances or period of difficulty does not automatically mean that you cannot foster. The assessment considers the nature of the information, its relevance to fostering and any safeguards that may be needed.

A social worker will normally complete a detailed assessment with you and your household. This involves conversations about your childhood, relationships, support network, parenting or caring experience, approach to boundaries, and ability to work with professionals. The social worker will also consider how you may respond to behaviours linked to trauma, separation, loss or disrupted early experiences.

Your home environment is considered too. The assessment looks at whether there is suitable space, privacy and safety for a child, along with practical arrangements such as household routines, transport, pets and any risks that need managing. You do not need to present a perfect household. What matters is your ability to recognise challenges, reflect on your approach and make appropriate changes when required.

Preparation training normally forms part of the assessment journey. It gives you a clearer understanding of the needs of children in care, safeguarding, safer caring, recording, confidentiality, contact with birth families and working as part of a professional network. Training is also an opportunity to decide whether fostering is right for your household before the assessment is completed.

You should expect the process to involve regular discussions rather than a single interview. Use these meetings to ask about the types of placements that may suit your household, the support available, financial arrangements, approval categories and how decisions are made. If your circumstances change while your application is being assessed—for example, a change of address, relationship, employment, health or household membership—tell the agency promptly.

Once the assessment information has been gathered, the social worker prepares a report setting out the evidence, strengths, areas requiring support and proposed terms of approval. You should have the opportunity to read the relevant report, correct factual errors and provide comments before it is considered through the agency’s decision-making process.

In many fostering services, an independent fostering panel reviews the assessment and makes a recommendation about approval. The panel may ask questions through the social worker or invite you to attend. The final decision is made by the agency decision-maker, taking account of the assessment and panel recommendation. Possible outcomes include approval, a request for further information, or a decision not to approve.

If you are approved, the agency discusses the type of placements that may be appropriate and the terms of your approval. Approval does not mean that a child is placed immediately or that every referral will be suitable. Matching considers the child’s needs alongside your experience, household, location, skills, available space and support network.

After approval, you continue to receive guidance, training and support as you prepare for placements and develop your fostering skills. Become A Foster Family provides support through local teams across the West Midlands, with offices in Droitwich and Stoke and staff based throughout the region.

If you decide that fostering is not right for you, or the agency identifies that it cannot progress your application, you should be given an explanation of the decision and information about any relevant next steps. The most useful approach throughout is to ask questions, share information honestly and treat the assessment as a two-way process: the agency is assessing your suitability, while you are also deciding whether its expectations, support and approach are right for your household.