The majority of foster carers are very poorly paid and many receive no income from fostering damaged and vulnerable young people, according to leading charity the Fostering Network.
The claim is made in a new report published today, Tuesday 6 March 2007, which examines levels of pay and income among foster carers in Wales and finds that, despite making a vital contribution to society, many foster carers are poorly paid and receive only token payments while others are paid nothing at all. The report argues that fostering is often a full-time job due to the needs of children being cared for but warns that a lack of adequate pay is pushing too many foster families into poverty.
The report, Can't Afford to Foster, found that:
- 47 per cent of foster carers receive no payment at all
- 81 per cent of foster carers are paid less than the minimum wage
- 87 per cent of foster carers do not have a full-time job outside the home and must rely on the fee from fostering to meet living costs, even if this amount is inadequate.
Many fostered children have experienced difficulties in the past and need foster carers who can stay at home in order to be available during the daytime. Some fostering services stipulate that the main foster carer cannot have a second job. With limited opportunities for foster carers to earn extra income, the report calls for levels of pay to be increased substantially if financial hardship is to be avoided and children are not to be further disadvantaged.
Despite the full-time nature of fostering, the report found that many foster carers have to supplement income from fostering:
- 38 per cent of foster carers take on additional part or full-time work outside the home
- 41 per cent have to rely on a partner's salary
- 24 per cent of foster carers claim key benefits*
Even those who are paid face periods of financial instability when children move in and out of their care - at least one third of foster carers report they are not paid for 52 weeks a year. The Fostering Network believes this is unacceptable given that all families need to manage ordinary household expenses and foster carers in particular may take on additional expense.
The Fostering Network insists that levels of pay must rise, particularly given the high expectations now placed on foster carers. While in the past foster carers were considered as volunteers, who received an allowance to cover the expense incurred from looking after an extra child, today foster carers are expected to work as part of a professional team, alongside social workers and teachers.
The Fostering Network's chief executive, Robert Tapsfield, said: "Foster carers are increasingly required to work full-time and take on complex duties and responsibilities but often they are treated as volunteers when it comes to pay. Foster carers do not and should not foster because of the money but neither should society expect them to do it for love alone. We would not expect social workers or teachers to work for nothing and be forced to claim benefits in order to make ends meet."
The report, launched as part of a wider campaign, calls on the government to address inadequacies in pay by introducing fees to reflect the requirements of individual fostering placements. This would mean paying foster carers, on the basis of their time commitment, level of skills, training and the number of children placed with them. In addition, the report makes the case for foster carers to be paid a fee for 52 weeks of the year to provide the opportunity for a break between placements.
There is currently a shortage of 750 foster carers in Wales and the report stresses that if levels of pay fail to increase, additional numbers will not recruited and many existing foster carers will feel they can't afford to continue.
Sian Adams is a foster carer living in Monmouthshire. She said: "Fostering is a way of life, and we didn't start for the money, but we are most definitely struggling financially now we foster. We constantly subsidise our fee with our own money. On top of this we had to take out a loan to buy a people carrier and are paying the mortgage on a house big enough for the children we foster."
*Benefits such as: Jobseeker's Allowance, Incapacity Benefit and Severe Disablement Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, Income Support and National Insurance Credits. This figure does not include universal benefits such as Child Benefit.
Download a media briefing for Can't Afford to Foster: A Study of Fee Payments to Foster Carers in Wales.
For media enquiries or to arrange interviews with a spokesperson or case study contact Becca Bryant or Claire Dickinson at the Fostering Network on 020 7620 6437/6441 or email media@fostering.net.