Can Foster Carers Choose Which Placements They Accept?

Accepting a foster placement is a shared decision rather than an automatic requirement. A proposed placement should be considered against your approval, experience, household circumstances and ability to meet the child’s assessed needs. You should have enough relevant information to decide whether you can provide safe and appropriate care.

How the matching process works

When a child needs a foster home, the fostering team considers the information available about the child and compares it with the carers who may be able to meet those needs. This is known as matching. The discussion may cover:

• the child’s age, personality and daily care needs;
• any health, developmental, emotional or behavioural needs;
• whether the child needs to live with brothers or sisters;
• contact arrangements with parents, relatives or other important people;
• education, transport and location requirements;
• known risks, including risks to other children, adults or pets in the household;
• the type and length of placement being considered; and
• how the placement may affect existing children or foster children in your home.

Your approval will also be relevant. For example, your approval may specify the age range or number of children you can care for, whether you can offer a particular type of placement, and the sleeping arrangements available in your home. These requirements help determine whether a proposed placement is suitable before the practical details are discussed.

What information should you receive?

The information shared will depend on what is known and what can lawfully be disclosed, but it should give you a reasonable understanding of the child’s circumstances and likely needs. You can ask questions about routines, medication, education, contact, previous placements, triggers, known risks and the support available. It is sensible to identify anything that could affect your ability to provide care before agreeing.

Information about a child may be incomplete, particularly when a placement is arranged during a crisis. That does not remove the need for a discussion about known risks. If important information emerges later, the fostering team should review the arrangements with you and consider whether additional support or a different plan is needed.

When might a carer decline?

You may decide not to accept a placement if the child’s needs fall outside your approval or experience, if the household cannot safely manage the identified risks, or if the practical arrangements are not workable. This could include concerns about transport, bedroom arrangements, other children in the household, work commitments or the effect on an existing placement.

A decision should be based on suitability and safety, not on assumptions about a child’s background or personal characteristics. Fostering decisions must respect equality and the child’s identity, culture, religion, disability and relationships. The purpose of matching is to understand what support the child needs and whether you can provide it, rather than to seek a perfect or risk-free situation.

Planned and urgent placements

For a planned placement, there may be more opportunity to exchange information, involve relevant professionals and prepare the household. An urgent placement may allow less time for discussion, but you should still be told what is known and given the opportunity to raise concerns. If you do not understand the proposed arrangements or believe a placement would be unsafe, speak to your supervising social worker or the fostering team before agreeing.

Once you accept a placement, you take on responsibility for following the agreed care plan and notifying the relevant professionals if circumstances change. You should not feel pressured to agree simply because a child needs somewhere to live. At the same time, the decision needs to consider the child’s immediate safety and welfare, not only whether the placement is convenient.

What happens if you say no?

Declining one placement does not automatically mean you are unsuitable to foster. The reasons for the decision may be recorded and discussed so that future referrals are better matched. However, repeatedly declining placements without clear reasons, or accepting placements that are outside your approval or ability to manage safely, may need to be reviewed with your supervising social worker.

It is helpful to be honest about your skills, limits and household circumstances during assessment and after approval. Good matching depends on accurate information from both sides. Asking questions, identifying risks and saying when you need further guidance are important parts of responsible fostering, whether or not you accept the proposed placement.