Types of fostering explained
Fostering is not one single thing. Children need different kinds of care depending on their age, their circumstances and what is happening with their own family. Understanding the main types helps you picture where you might fit, and you can be approved for one type or several.
Emergency fostering
Caring for a child at very short notice, sometimes within hours, when they need a safe place to stay right now. Emergency placements are usually brief, from a night to a few days, while longer-term plans are made. It suits carers who can be flexible and calm under pressure.
Short-term fostering
Caring for a child for a set period, from a few weeks to several months, while decisions are made about their future, whether that is returning home, moving to long-term fostering, or another plan. This is one of the most common types of fostering.
Long-term and permanent fostering
When a child cannot return to their birth family and will not be adopted, they may stay with a foster family through to adulthood. Long-term fostering is about stability and belonging: becoming a steady, lasting part of a young person's life. In many cases carers can continue supporting a young person beyond 18 under "staying put" arrangements.
Respite and short-break fostering
Regular, planned short stays, for example one weekend a month, that give another foster family or a child's own family a break, or give a disabled child a positive change of scene. It is a good way to foster around other commitments, and a common route for people new to fostering.
Parent and child fostering
Caring for a parent, often a young parent, together with their baby or child, usually to support and assess how they manage day to day. It is a skilled role: you are supporting a parent to build confidence and keep their child safe, not taking over.
Specialist and therapeutic fostering
Caring for children and young people with more complex needs, for example significant trauma, disabilities, or challenging experiences. Specialist carers receive extra training, closer support and usually a higher fee, because of the skill the role asks for.
Other arrangements you may hear about
- Fostering siblings. Keeping brothers and sisters together wherever possible, which needs enough space and capacity.
- Supported lodgings. Offering a room and guidance to a young person aged 16 and over as they move toward independence.
- Kinship or connected carers. When a child is cared for by a relative or family friend. This is usually arranged differently from mainstream fostering, through the child's local authority.
Which type is right for you?
You do not have to decide everything up front. During your assessment, a fostering service talks through your home, your availability and your strengths, and you are approved for the types and ages that fit. Many carers start with one type and take on others as they grow in experience.
Find out where you fit
The best way to work out which type suits you is to talk it through. Start your enquiry and a fostering advisor will help, or compare fostering agencies in your area. If you are just starting to look into it, read how to become a foster carer and who can foster.
This guide is general information. The types of care a service offers, and the terms used, can vary, so confirm the detail with a fostering service or at gov.uk.