Fostering pay and benefits

Being a foster carer for children with disabilities can be a challenging but very rewarding role. We recognise the commitment our carers give to their important role and offer fostering allowances of up to £700 per week per child, in addition to our extensive support and benefits.

Fostering Allowance

To cover the costs of caring for a child including clothes, food, toiletries, pocket money, leisure activities and other expenses incurred in caring for them.

Fostering Fee

This is your reward element for providing foster care; effectively your 'salary' to recognise the time, skills and experience you offer to the children in your care.

"When we talk to people about fostering they tell us that they cannot afford to foster a child. Often they do not realise foster carers receive weekly allowances.

The allowances mean that we don't need to worry about money. They ensure that we can afford to provide for the children and do things together without worrying or watching every penny."

How it works

Self-Employment and Fostering Tax Relief

As a Foster Carer you will be classed as self-employed, so therefore you will be required to self-assess and be responsible for your own tax return. Fostering Together can direct you to resources to help you to do this.

HMRC have some very generous allowances for foster carers in recognition of their important work, so in some cases, you may not need to pay very much tax at all.

Tax Exemption

You will not pay tax on the first £18,140 you earn per year from fostering.

Foster Carers have a fixed tax exemption for the first £18,140 per year you earn in care income; this is unique to the fostering sector and is per fostering household.

In March 2023, the government committed to keep this rate rising in line with inflation to the nearest £10.

Tax Relief

You will also have some further tax relief on your earnings on top of the tax exemption. This is dependent on the age of the child or young people you provide foster care for:

Children Under 11 = £375 every week
Children 11 and over = £450 every week

The government commited in March 2023 that this Tax Relief, called Qualifying Care Relief, will also rise with inflation to the nearest £5 per week starting with the 2024-2025 tax year.

Alex has started fostering with Fostering Together to make a difference for a young person's life and to provide them a loving home. He cares for Daniel (aged 14) in a long term arrangement who has complex medical needs and learning disabilties.

Alex receives £650 per week.
Alex is paid £33,800 per year and will pay no tax for fostering income!

(This is assuming Alex has no other income.)

	Per Week	Per Year
Paid to Family	£650	£33,800
Tax Relief	£450 (young person over 11)	£23,400 (£450 x 52 weeks)
Fixed Tax Exemption		£18,140
Total Tax Threshold (Tax Free Income*)		£33,400
Taxable Income		£0 !

Jane and Emma have been fostering for 15 years and transfer to Fostering Together after being impressed by their shared values and comprehensive support. They care for Lola (aged 16) in a long term arrangement who has complex medical needs and a physical disability, and Thomas (aged 8) who autism and a mild physical disability.

Jane and Emma receive £650 per week for their first child cared for and £675 per week for their second child cared for.
Jane and Emma are paid £68,900 per year and will only pay tax on £7,860 of this.

(This is assuming Jane and Emma have no other income.)

	Per Week	Per Year
Paid to Family	£650 + £675 = £1325	£68,900
Tax Relief	£825 (young person under 11 + young person over 11)	£42,900 (£825 x 52 weeks)
Fixed Tax Exemption		£18,140
Total Tax Threshold (Tax Free Income*)		£61,040
Taxable Income		£7,860

Shahid and Lesley have been fostering for 2 years and are active members of the Fostering Together community. They care for siblings Caleb (aged 5) and Faith (aged 10) who have global development delay and cerebral palsy, and also Adam (aged 17) who has Epilepsy and a Visual Impairment.

Shahid and Lesley receive £650 per week for the first child fostered, £675 per week for their second child cared for and £700 per week for their third fostered child.
Shahid and Lesley are paid £105,300 per year and will only pay tax on £24,760 of this.

(This is assuming Shahid and Lesley have no other income.)

	Per Week	Per Year
Paid to Family	£650 + £675 + £700 = £2025	£105,300
Tax Relief	£1200 (2 young persons under 11 + young person over 11)	£62,400 (£1200 x 52 weeks)
Fixed Tax Exemption		£18,140
Total Tax Threshold (Tax Free Income*)		£80,540
Taxable Income		£24,760

Additional Roles for Foster Carers

As part of our commitment to working together, we encourage our fostering families in their ongoing development and recognise their contributions to our common vision.

Some foster carers will hold additional roles within their fostering community and contribute to service development, including:

Supporting and mentoring new foster carers
Providing training to other carers including supporting Skill to Foster courses or sharing specialist skills
Advising, reviewing and evaluating our services and resources
Supporting in the recruitment of foster carers

Discover more about becoming a foster carer...

Whether you are new to fostering, wanting to learn more about this challenging and rewarding role, or an experienced carer considering transferring to a supportive provider which shares your principles and values, please get in touch today.

Leave your details below for a FREE fostering information guide as well as access to our 25 minute video presentation: Discover a Rewarding Career & Fulfilling Lifestyle Fostering a Child with Disabilities where you will discover a comprehensive summary of our supportive service and how we work with you to create positive futures for children with disabilities.

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