Training, support and rewards•Salford City Council

Salford City Council values its foster carers. We're here to provide you with support, advice and encouragement at all times.

All our foster carers are offered regular training which includes day time and evening sessions. There is ongoing support from your own social worker, support workers, support groups and the Foster Care Association, as well as a 24/7 emergency phone line.

Foster carers also receive financial rewards to help them to provide the best possible care for the children they look after, as well as recognise their skills and commitment.

Training

All potential foster carers must undertake the ‘Skills to Foster' training before being approved. Once approved, foster carers are offered a rolling programme of training to help them in their role. Foster carers also have to complete a work book in their first year of fostering, which leads to an accredited award. All foster carers will receive support from their family placement social worker to complete the work book and even undertake further training.

All foster carers are encouraged to extend their knowledge through training and a personal development plan will be available for every foster carer outlining training and development needs.

Support

Fostering can be hard work but also highly rewarding in seeing children develop and progress in a positive way. A family placement social worker will visit on a regular basis providing advice, support and guidance.

Children in placement will have their own social worker, who will visit the child and talk to foster carers about future plans for the child. There are other professionals who can support foster carers and your family placement social worker will make sure that you know how to access additional support if necessary.

The Focus fostering team provide more intensive support to foster carers by more regular supervision and involvement with other professionals involved in a child's care.

There are a number of support groups which foster carers attend to discuss fostering issues and meet other foster carers. Focus foster carers meet on a fortnightly basis. There is also a Foster Care Association which offers advice and support independent from Children's Services.

We are also members of New Family Social, which means our adopters and foster carers have free membership to this support network for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) adoptive and foster families.

In addition, you can contact Fosterline, the free support and advice service for foster carers and those interested in fostering which has been funded by the Department for Education.

Rewards

Foster carers receive an age related allowance for each child in their care to cover day to day expenses. Additional allowances are paid for clothing, holidays and celebration events. Foster carers also receive a reward payment or skill fee and there are a number of levels of reward depending upon the experience of the foster carer and the type of fostering scheme.

The Focus fostering scheme provide generous financial package so a carer can stay at home full time, which will be necessary due to the intensive nature of the schemes. Children's Services can also provide financial assistance with equipment and access to a toy library.

The information pack includes a full breakdown of the financial support available to foster carers.

More information about payments?

Salford City Council Fostering Service fees and allowances

We’ve listed information here to help you understand what payments you’ll be entitled to when you become an approved foster carer with Salford City Council.

Some allowances are made up of professional fees and a child’s allowance (also known as boarding allowance). The child’s allowance is intended to cover food, clothes, toiletries and other expenses including pocket money and savings.

The carers professional allowance increases based on the training and progression. All foster carers begin as level 2 after initial training and application approval.

Age range	Weekly boarding allowance	Additional weekly skills payment (reached by completing additional free training)	Total weekly allowance per child
Under one year	£169	Level 2 = £106 Level 3 = £160 Level 4 = £220	Level 2 = £275 Level 3 = £329 Level 4 = £389
One to four years	£175	Level 2 = £106 Level 3 = £160 = Level 4 £220	Level 2 = £281 Level 3 = £335 Level 4 = £395
Five to ten years	£192	Level 2 = £106 Level 3 = £160 Level 4 = £220	Level 2 = £298 Level 3 = £352 Level 4 = £412
11 to 15 years	£219	Level 2 = £106 Level 3 = £160 Level 4 = £220	Level 2 = £325 Level 3 = £379 Level 4 = £439
16 to 17 years	£256	Level 2 = £106 Level 3 = £160 Level 4 = £220	Level 2 = £362 Level 3 = £416 Level 4 = £476
Enhanced payments	Age related boarding	Enhanced placements £487.93	-

Birthday and Festival Allowance

Birthday allowance is paid annually for a child’s birthday, festival allowance is an allowance also paid annually provided at significant festival aligned with a child’s religion such as Christmas or Eid.

Age range	Annual payment
Under one year	£338
One to four years	£350
Five to ten years	£384
11 to 15 years	£438
16 to 17 years	£512

Holiday allowance

Holiday allowance	Annual payment
Under one years	£273
One to four years	£360
Five to ten years	£408
11 to 15 years	£530
16 to 17 years	£510

Prom Allowance

£200

Additional payments are also available such as clothing allowances for children who have entered care, initial school uniform, primary and secondary school trip allowances, equipment and car mileage.

There is also a wide range of in person support for foster carers such as a women’s evening support group, men’s evening support group, daytime group, foster carers birth children support group, Fight for Change, foster carer awards, foster family days, development days, foster carer ambassadors group.

For information contact: fosterforus@salford.gov.uk

We'd love to hear from you!

Call 0161 799 1268, send us an email at fosterforus@salford.gov.uk or complete our online enquiry form below.

Fostering enquiry form

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Training, support and rewards