Therapeutic foster care
Looking after children with complex behavioural, emotional and additional needs.
Therapeutic foster care is when you provide high-level care for a child or young person with complex behavioural, emotional or additional needs. These children and young people are the most at risk, vulnerable and face difficulties in other care placements, at school and in their daily lives.
A child or young person may be placed in therapeutic foster care if they:
- have experienced a high level of trauma
- have experienced abuse or exploitation
- have been through or as an alternative to the youth justice system
- have been sectioned or detained under the Mental Health Act
- have difficulties living in a children’s residential home or other fostering placements
- have lived in a children’s residential home but are ready to step down
You will receive specialist training, tailored support and enhanced allowances to provide a stable and nurturing environment where a child can have a better quality of life and build a brighter future.
Financial support
You will receive enhanced financial allowances of up to £56,000 a year to support you and the child or young person on your therapeutic foster care journey and reflect the high level of care needed.
Once you are an approved therapeutic foster carer, we will also provide financial support during the transition and matching periods to ensure you have the full capacity and resource to welcome children and young people into your home and provide specialist care.
Training
Our advanced ongoing training will be tailored for you and the child in your care to give you the tools to provide the skilled care needed to improve children’s wellbeing, help them overcome trauma and build a positive future.
Training includes:
- expert led therapeutic parenting training; Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity, Empathy (PACE) principles
- trauma-informed approaches to behaviour and emotional regulation
- building relationships and setting boundaries with children who have experienced trauma
Support
We will be by your side every step of the way of your journey as a therapeutic foster carer to help you provide stable and resilient care.
You and the child will be surrounded by a dedicated team providing ongoing reviewed support to meet the needs of your foster family.
We will provide tailored 24/7 support, guidance and regular supervision from a dedicated network of professionals to make sure you feel secure as a therapeutic foster carer and provide the focused support to meet the needs of children you look after.
You will have access to intensive support from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) including specialist assessments, crisis intervention and tailored support from clinical psychotherapists.
Children and young people placed with therapeutic foster carers will have a high-priority referral to our dedicated team of in-house life story professionals to help support their emotional wellbeing and promote understanding and healing from trauma.
Perks and benefits
In addition to our generous allowance, we have an exclusive perks and benefits package worth over £13,000 to recognise the amazing work our foster carers do.
Aliyah, 15
Aliyah is a bright and creative 15-year-old who would love to work in the beauty industry when she’s older. She has experienced a lot of trauma in her early life and has a history of running away. She been living in a children’s home following several foster placements and needs foster carers who can offer close supervision, emotional availability, and clear boundaries within a safe and nurturing family environment.
Jayden, 12
Jayden is a thoughtful and intelligent 12-year-old with a passion for music and playing guitar. Frequent moves from different foster homes have made it hard for him to feel secure, trust adults and focus in school. He can become withdrawn or defensive when he feels misunderstood. He wants to build trust but fears rejection – he has a strong sense of identity and needs a space where he can flourish.
I literally had to support this young person physically, emotionally and developmentally. It was really difficult but with time I managed to turn his life around.”