What documents should I prepare before foster care checks begin?

Before foster care checks begin, prepare the information and supporting paperwork that allows your fostering service to verify your circumstances, health, household, finances and suitability. You will not necessarily need every document at the first stage, because the exact requirements depend on your household and the fostering service’s assessment process, but organising the following in advance can prevent avoidable delays.

Application and consent paperwork

• Complete the fostering application and any household information forms carefully, using your full legal details and consistent dates.
• Sign consent forms allowing the fostering service to request relevant checks, contact referees, obtain medical information and make enquiries with other organisations where required.
• Keep copies of submitted forms so you can check later answers and explain any changes accurately.
• Note any previous names, addresses, applications to foster or adopt, and periods of living outside the UK if the forms ask for them. Do not leave gaps in your history; explain them clearly instead.

Health-related information

Your fostering service will normally arrange a medical assessment through your GP or another approved health professional. It may help to have the names and contact details of relevant medical practices, a list of current medication, details of ongoing treatment, and information about significant past illnesses or operations available. You should not withhold relevant information or try to interpret medical evidence yourself. The assessment considers whether fostering is compatible with your health and ability to meet a child’s needs, rather than requiring a particular medical history.

Household and family information

Prepare accurate details for everyone who lives in, regularly stays at, or has a significant role in your household. Depending on the circumstances, the fostering service may need information or consent from adult household members and may arrange checks for them. This can include partners who live elsewhere but have regular contact with the household, depending on the nature of that contact.

You may also be asked for details about children in the household, previous relationships, close relatives, or other adults who will help care for a fostered child. Keep relevant dates and contact details to hand, but ask the assessing social worker what is required rather than sending sensitive information unnecessarily.

Employment and financial information

Fostering services commonly ask about your employment, working pattern and financial circumstances so they can consider how fostering would fit into everyday life. Useful records may include recent payslips, benefit information, self-employment records or other evidence of income if requested. You may also need to provide information about regular household outgoings, debts or financial commitments.

This is not simply an affordability test. The purpose is to understand whether your household can manage financially without relying on a child’s fostering allowance to clear existing financial difficulties, and whether your work commitments allow you to meet the expectations of fostering.

Accommodation and safety information

Have relevant details about your home available, including your housing arrangement and who has permission to live there. If you rent your property, the fostering service may need confirmation from your landlord that fostering is permitted. If you live in leasehold or supported accommodation, check whether additional consent is needed.

The assessment will also consider practical safety matters, such as sleeping arrangements, fire precautions, storage of medicines and cleaning products, garden or water hazards, and the safe storage of confidential records. You may be asked for documents or information connected with these arrangements rather than a formal certificate for every aspect of your home.

Vehicles, driving and pets

If you will transport a fostered child, prepare driving and vehicle information when requested. This may include your driving licence details, vehicle insurance, MOT information and confirmation that the vehicle is suitable and safely maintained. The requirements can differ according to the child’s age, the journeys expected and who will drive.

Provide accurate details of pets and other animals in the home. The fostering service may need to consider their temperament, supervision and any risks to children. Veterinary or training records may be useful if a particular concern needs to be assessed, but do not submit them unless requested.

Education, training and previous experience

Make a record of relevant qualifications, training and experience in childcare, education, health, social care, youth work or supporting children with additional needs. You may be asked for certificates or for permission to verify qualifications, although formal childcare qualifications are not always required to apply.

Also prepare dates and contact details for previous employers, voluntary organisations or services where you worked with children or vulnerable people. Explain your actual responsibilities rather than relying only on job titles. If you have previously fostered, adopted, provided supported lodgings or applied to do so, give complete and accurate details, including the name of the service and the outcome.

Criminal record and statutory-check information

The fostering service will guide you through enhanced criminal record checks and other statutory enquiries. You may need to provide additional information about previous addresses, names or relevant matters so that records can be matched correctly. A criminal record or caution does not automatically prevent someone from fostering; honesty and context are important, and the service will assess any information in relation to safeguarding.

Do not order checks independently unless the fostering service tells you to do so. It will normally explain which applications must be completed, who needs to provide consent and whether original documents or certified copies are required.

How to organise your documents

• Create a secure folder, either paper-based or digital, with separate sections for application forms, health, household, employment, accommodation, transport and previous experience.
• Keep a timeline of addresses, employment, education and significant household changes so dates are consistent across forms.
• Check that names, dates and contact details are current before submitting anything.
• Keep originals secure and provide copies only where accepted. Never send sensitive documents by an unapproved method.
• Tell your assessing social worker promptly if your household, relationship, employment, health, address or legal circumstances change during the assessment.

The fostering service will tell you which documents it needs, whether an original is required, and how each item should be supplied. If you are unsure whether a document is relevant, ask before sending it; this protects your personal information and ensures that the checks are completed using accurate, up-to-date evidence.