How is ongoing foster carer training delivered?

Ongoing foster carer training is usually delivered through a planned programme that combines structured learning, practical guidance and regular review. It continues after approval and is adapted to the carer’s experience, the needs of children in placement and any changes in fostering practice, safeguarding requirements or legislation.

Training is normally arranged through a personal development plan. This identifies the learning a foster carer needs to maintain their skills and prepare for future placements. It may be discussed during supervision, reviews or conversations with the fostering team. The plan can include essential subjects for all carers, as well as additional learning linked to a child’s age, background, health, behaviour or specific circumstances.

Common delivery methods include:

• Face-to-face courses led by fostering, social care, education or therapeutic professionals.
• Live online sessions where carers can learn with other foster carers and ask questions.
• Self-directed online modules, reading and other learning materials completed independently.
• One-to-one guidance during supervision, particularly when learning needs to be applied to a current placement.
• Practical discussions, reflective exercises and scenario-based activities that relate training to everyday fostering.

The format may vary according to the subject. A course about safeguarding or safer caring may involve guidance, case examples and discussion, while learning about communication, attachment or trauma may focus on interpreting behaviour and responding consistently. Some subjects are best understood through group discussion, whereas others can be completed through online study and follow-up reflection.

Topics covered during a fostering career can include safeguarding, safer caring, child protection, attachment, trauma, behaviour, communication, health, first aid, education, identity, equality and diversity. Training may also address allegations, recording concerns, confidentiality, online safety and working with social workers, schools and other professionals. The precise programme depends on the fostering service, the carer’s development plan and the children being cared for.

Training is not only about completing a course. Foster carers are generally expected to consider how the learning affects their daily practice, record any actions and discuss relevant points with their supervising social worker. This helps connect formal learning with safer routines, better communication and more consistent care. Evidence of completed training and reflection may be kept as part of the carer’s professional records and reviewed as part of ongoing assessment.

Training can also be arranged in response to changing circumstances. For example, a carer may need further guidance when a child’s needs become more complex, when a new type of placement is being considered or when an incident identifies an additional learning requirement. Foster carers should be able to ask for clarification or further development rather than trying to manage a new situation without suitable preparation.

Before starting any course, it is sensible to ask how it will be delivered, whether attendance is required, how online learning is accessed, how completion is recorded and who to contact with questions. It is also useful to check how the training links with supervision and whether carers can request learning that reflects the needs of a child in their care. A clear training record should show what has been completed, what remains outstanding and how learning will be applied in practice.

Ongoing training therefore works as part of a wider support process. It gives foster carers opportunities to refresh essential knowledge, develop more specialised skills and reflect on their practice, while ensuring learning remains relevant to the children and young people they support.