Foster for your local authority and change a child’s future

Fostering means offering a safe, loving home to children and young people in need, with full support and professional training. Fostering fits around your life, and the difference you make lasts a lifetime…

Chris and Kieran have fostered teenagers for nearly 30 years and they have enjoyed seeing them grow up, become independent, and remain part of their lives as adults.

Why should you consider fostering?

Foster Carers provide a safe, loving, nurturing home for children who are unable to live with their birth family. This could be on an emergency, short- or long-term basis. It may be because their parents need help through a difficult time; the child or young person is experiencing difficulties that their parents feel unable to manage; or it is unsafe for the child to remain at home due to neglect or abuse.

Foster Carers are self-employed, work from home and receive:


·       Weekly payments with additional allowances and tax benefits 
·       Ongoing professional and peer support
·       A comprehensive training offer
·       The chance to make a real and lasting difference to local children


Fostering can be short term or long term, ranging from a few days to a few months, or many years. To be a foster carer you don’t need to be a superhero. You just need to offer care, stability, and a sense of belonging to those children and young people who need it most. Fostering isn’t about being perfect, it’s about being there. You will need to have some experience of caring for children (that could be looking after a niece or nephew), have a spare bedroom, and be kind and patient (a sense of humour also helps!). By fostering with your not-for-profit local authority fostering service, you can give children the chance to thrive.

Find out more about how this could work for you by joining one of our information sessions!

What makes a good foster carer?

The role of a foster carer is to provide a stable, loving home. Your life experiences, insights and fortitude are all great assets. If you’ve hit a few bumps in the road on life’s rich journey, you are likely to have the resilience and empathy that children in care need. 

Brighton & Hove, East Sussex and West Sussex County Councils foster carers come from a wide range of backgrounds, with lots of different experiences and skills. LGBTQ+ foster carers are a vital part of the fostering community.

If you have a spare bedroom, some previous childcare experience - through family, work, or as a volunteer - enjoy caring for children and have the time and energy to put a child’s need first, your local authority fostering team wants to hear from you! If fostering isn’t for you but you know someone who would make a fantastic carer, you can still play an important part by sharing the message that foster carers are urgently needed.

Take the first step today!

Brighton & Hove, East Sussex and West Sussex County Councils' have joined together to host an online information event (alongside Adoption South East) which will include an overview of fostering and adoption, the different types of fostering, the process, the support you can expect, some myth busting and much more.
LGBTQ+ foster carers will share their experience of the day-to-day realities of fostering and you will have the opportunity to ask questions - all from the comfort of your own home!

The decision to foster is an important one, so there will be no pressure to get involved and no commitment to take it any further.

For more information from your local authority fostering teams, visit:
•   Brighton and Hove City Council
•   East Sussex County Council 
•   West Sussex County Council