Fostering in retirement

Have all of your children grown up and moved out? Is your house quiet and empty? Do you still have love to give to a child? Being in retirement can be great, but it can also be lonely and quiet. If you are wondering what to do with your empty bedrooms and your quiet house during the day, why not look into fostering?

Have your children flown the nest? Do you miss the giggles of children and toys scattered around your home day to day? Are you lost with what to do with your empty bedrooms?

Fostering is often a path people go down once their children have left home as they still have the energy and love to give to children. Having multiple spare bedrooms in your home means you have the space to take in multiple children or sibling groups, these children are often either split up due to the lack of spare bedrooms in people’s homes or are the last to go into placements for this reason.

Why should you choose to foster?

Children who go into care are often from difficult or disadvantaged backgrounds and many have been through some form of neglect. This could lead to them struggling in educational or delays in their development. Being much older than these children will mean you would have a lot of knowledge, wisdom, and life experience the children could benefit greatly from.

Teaching children and young people the basics like manners, how to read, or making sure they get to school on time is the bare minimum of how you could help children that need your support.

Children and young people that go into foster care need someone who can give them a safe home, love, and a space to unwind and have privacy in their bedroom. They may not have had cooked meals or a clean and tidy bedroom.

Being in retirement will mean you have time to provide a child with these things so they can have the basic care that most children take for granted.

Fostering when retired

In the UK there is no upper age limit to fostering. The minimum age is 21, but whether you are in your 30’s or 60’s there is no upper age limit. You will need to bear in mind that you will be fostering young people and children, so activities will be on your daily schedule whilst fostering.

You will need to do school runs, attend meetings and be able to play and interact with the child in placement. You will need to be fit and healthy so you can take the children to the park, on days out and go on holiday. Many of the children that come into our care haven’t experienced these things so giving them the opportunity to experience holidays and days out is something we want our foster carers to be able to provide.

What are the positives of fostering in retirement?

We encourage applications from all age groups as we know that in every stage of life you experience new things and gain new knowledge.

Older people have more life experience that they can pass on to younger generations. Children that come into care need someone to guide them towards a bright future and enable them to achieve their full potential, so having someone a few generations older could be good for them as they will absorb the wisdom and knowledge from their carer.

How do you know if you are fit enough to foster?

To foster you must be fit enough to look after children and have the energy to play, do school runs, and meet the needs of the child in your care. As a part of the fostering process, we will check your health by providing our applicants with a medical form to fill in with your details which is then passed to your GP.

Other requirements are a spare bedroom, having the right to remain in the UK, and having access to travel such as having a driving license or nearby public transport to attend meetings and fulfil school runs.