Fostering children with disabilities
Making a difference in a child or young person's life is a special privilege and is hugely rewarding.
Request your free guide to fostering todayFostering a child with disabilities can bring you new skills and insights. Your care, love and support can make a real difference and help them to reach their full potential.
To foster a child with disabilities can be incredibly rewarding but takes an extra level of skill and commitment. There are even fewer foster families available in the UK who are able to do this.
Disabilities can come in the form of physical, emotional, medical and children with additional needs such as autistic spectrum conditions.
At Action for Children Fostering, we're focused on what young people with disabilities can do, not what they can't do.
We are proud of each individual's achievements and believe that our role is to enable each person to have choices, respect and independence, wherever possible, and to have their voices heard.
Action for Children Fostering recognises that caring for a young person with a disability can be a very challenging undertaking, as well as bringing joy, hope and pride in a child's achievements.
We will give you all the specific training and support you will need to help improve some of the most vulnerable lives in society.
We need foster families to care for these children in a variety of ways:
Long term
For many years and into adulthood. Action for Children Fostering will be with you all the way, supporting you emotionally, financially and in specialist training. We will also aim to provide you with regular planned breaks.
Short term
Could be days, weeks or months. We will support you with all the specialist training and equipment you will need.
Short Breaks
This is where children who normally live with their parent(s) or other carers, come to Action for Children family homes for a regular break. This helps both the child and the parents/main carers recharge their batteries. Children get a home-from-home experience, the chance to try new activities and learn new skills. While still being provided with the same high level of support, training and resources.
If you're fostering a child with a disability who is under 16 years of age you may be eligible to claim for Disability Living Allowance (DLA) through your local authority. DLA is paid on top of any other benefits, income or tax credits that you may receive. It’s paid to the main foster carer to enhance the foster child’s life. You may also be able to get financial help from your local authority if any modifications are needed to your home.
