1. Aspire Foster Care (AFC), is a Christian based Independent Fostering Agency (IFA). What we do as an Organisation is underpinned by our Christian faith.  We believe that all children and young people are unique individuals, who deserve the opportunity to have a childhood that enables them to reach their potential.
2. Like all IFA’s we have to comply with current legislation and we are inspected by Ofsted to ensure we maintain the highest standards of care to the children and young people placed with us by Local Authorities. (you can see our latest Ofsted report as a PDF document - View download on the right)                             
3. Please also see our current Statement of Purpose for more detailed information on the agency

1. We provide foster placements to Local Authorities who need to place children and young people, who for a variety of reasons are currently unable to live with their own family or friends.
2. We aim to meet the needs of children and young people and facilitating positive development by:-
3. Offering a variety of different types of foster placements including short-term, bridging, pre adoption and emergency foster placements for children and young people.

We will:

1. Whenever possible, work together with children's parents/carers and all of the agencies and individuals concerned with the well being of the child/young person.
2. Ensure that children/young people are placed as appropriately as is possible, taking into consideration such things as the childs/young persons cultural background and the geographical location of the childs/young persons family, thus minimizing the chance of a foster placement breaking down.
3. At all times, promote and safeguard the welfare of the child/young person in placement.

1. Fostering has changed over the years and a lot is expected from Foster Carers who work for the agency.
2. Aspire Foster Care is looking for people who are able to demonstrate their commitment to caring for children and young people. There is a particular need for people willing to care for children who are 10 years of age and above and for siblings
3. You can be married or single.
4. You must have a suitable spare bedroom or bedrooms, depending upon how many children you are considering caring for.
5. You must of course enjoy caring for children & young people who can exhibit emotional and behavioural difficulties.
6. You need to have some experience of caring for, or working with children & young people

Caring for children and young people is very rewarding but can also be very demanding.

• The children we care for may have suffered abuse, neglect, bereavement or parental illness and their experiences may result understandably, in difficult, disruptive or challenging behaviour, but with the right amount of support, love and care most will be able to form positive relationships with their Carers.

The list below gives you some idea of the qualities that prospective Foster Carers need to possess

You need to have:

A genuine desire to want to improve the quality of life and outcomes of children & young people
An ability to relate to children, young people and their parents/carers, who come from a variety of backgrounds.
An ability to work with a range of other professionals and to be an advocate for the child/young person in your care.  
Empathy            
Sensitivity
Patience
Tolerance
Perseverance
Commitment
Calmness, when feeling under pressure
An ability to provide a consistently high standard of care
Be a realist – No matter how hard you try, sometimes things just won`t work out as you would like them to

If this list describes you, then you could be just the person that children, young people and AFC need

1. AFC will only recruit Foster Carers that they genuinely believe can meet the needs of the children referred to them by Local Authorities and who can also meet the needs of the Agency.
2. There is a process through which all people interested in fostering for the Agency have to go through. A qualified social work practitioner will assess all successful applicants.
3. The assessment is the time when we as an Agency really start to get to know you, there are no short cuts, and you will be expected to provide a lot of information about yourself and if relevant, your family.
4. You must also attend a period of mandatory training, this is in order to give those new to fostering an understanding of the task in hand and for those who may have already fostered children, an opportunity to refresh their knowledge and share their experiences with others.
5. (For further information, please see our policy on applying to become a foster carer)

Fostering can be a very demanding task and it is essential that Foster Carers feel fully prepared before caring for a child/young person and then feel supported when they are fostering. 
The package of support available to Foster Carers includes:

1. Initial preparation training prior to fostering and ongoing training after being approved.
2. The opportunity to obtain an NVQ Level 3, in caring for children and young people.
3. Regular minimum 3 weekly visits to your home by a qualified Supervising Social Worker, (more often when you first take a placement), and regular telephone contact, to monitor, support and offer advise.
4. A generous financial allowance for each child/young person placed with you.
5. 24 hour a day telephone support.
6. Up to two weeks paid respite per year.
7. Individual membership of the Fostering Network, which includes legal cover and a helpline.
8. The opportunity to meet up with other Foster Carers at a regular support group.

Reading a web page is no substitution for actually putting all those niggling questions to someone who works with foster families on a day-to-day basis.

 We know that taking the first step towards possibly caring for other people’s children, is a big one, but one that can be immensely rewarding. 

Few roles in life can offer the potential level of job satisfaction that fostering can.  After all, what can be more important than giving a child the chance to have a positive experience of family life.

1. If you feel that you have the potential to care for some of societies most vulnerable children and young people, then the next step is to contact Aspire Foster Care
2. We will have a brief discussion with you to see if you have the potential to be a Foster Carer for the agency and of course to see if you would like to work with us
3. Depending on the outcome we will them send you some further information about the Agency
4. The next step would be a home visit to discuss Fostering with you in more detail
5. If, following the home visit all goes well, we will then proceed to sending you an application pack which explains what happens next in more detail

Telephone:     0121 486 1112

Fax:                 0121 486 1114

Email:             info@aspirefostercare.co.uk

AFC – WE LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU

Aspire Foster Care Ltd.  Director:  Nigel Grogan.  Co Secretary:  Nigel Sabell.  First Floor Offices,
20 The Green, Kings Norton, Birmingham, B38 8SD.  Company reg no. 5669293